A Summer to Remember
by PhantomPierce-Okamoto
Summary: The masters give Ray, Allie and Gabe an assignment for the summer. Will it separate them? Or only bring them closer together? Sorry about the suckish summary and title. Genre three could be romance, but there isn't a lot...
1. Chapter 1

**Hi! So I'm new and not very good at this, so I decided to start with something easy-ish.**

Chapter One: The Unusual (and Not Very Popular) Assignment

"Can you believe the masters?!" Allie shouted. The trio was walking back from a meeting with the masters.

"Yeah. I mean I just got my dad back!" Ray complained. "A summer is a lot of time that I won't get back."

Gabe sighed. "I have no idea how I'm going to explain this to my parents."

"Well...I guess it's not so bad..." Ray said, also sighing.

"An entire summer." Allie snarled at him. "In the Kaiju realm. On CLEANUP DUTY!"

Gabe shrugged. "Yeah, but we get to choose the civilization we go to."

"What difference does that make?!" Allie exclaimed.

"I'm going to fire." Ray concluded. Gabe and Allie were both obviously taken aback.

"Why?" Allie asked.

"To help rebuild Blast Forge City." Ray responded. "Last time I saw it, it was in ruins. I want to help bring it back up."

"When it's done, you'll go to nature?" Gabe asked, already knowing the answer. Ray nodded.

"Probably. It'll be easy to work with Bob in fire and nature." Ray said shrugging.

Allie had a conflict. Go with Ray, have a sense of security. Go to darkness with Squeaky, have a different sense of security and independence. Which to choose?

"I'm going to darkness." Allie said.

"I think I'll go to water." Gabe said.

Ray snorted. "Why? You won't be with your girlfriend."

Gabe blushed at that. "Well, yes, but light suffered less substantial damage. Water suffered a lot more. And besides, I'd like to help Gargle out. I'll visit Sasha too, though."

Allie stopped suddenly, and looked around the temple walls. "So this is a break from our team?" Allie asked, almost sad.

Ray rubbed the back of his neck. "I...guess so. I never thought about that. We always spend the summer together."

"Yeah." Gabe said, solemnly. "And starting tenth grade, it'll be harder to see each other when not at the temple."

"Promise. We have to promise to visit each other at least every week." Allie said, firmly. Ray smiled at her.

"Promise." he said. Gabe nodded.

"Although, we'll need to decide where we go, when..." Gabe added.

Allie rolled her eyes and Ray laughed. "Sure, Gabe. But don't overthink it too much." Ray told him.

Gabe rolled his eyes, smiling. "Yeah, yeah."

"Oh boy. Now to tell my dad I want to spend my summer at Karate Sleepaway!" Allie sighed, sarcastically.

"Good luck with that." Ray said, wincing. "I just have to explain it to my parents, I guess."

"Easy for you to say." Gabe whined. "Your parents will actually understand."

*Allie's House, about an hour later*

"WHAT?!" a very surprised, a little upset Arthur Underhill exclaimed. Allie grimaced.

"Um...yeah." Allie said, slowly.

"Look, sweetie..." Arthur began, softly. "A summer...is a lot of time. Away from me and your friends. Time you can't get back."

_Believe me, I know._ Allie thought. "Yeah, but I really want to go."

Arthur sighed, sad. "Alright, if you REALLY want to go. But you can't complain once, understood?"

"Yes, dad. Thanks!" Allie said, a little less excitedly than she had intended.

*Gabe's House, about the same time*

"Gabey-baby..." Gabe's mother began. "...I'm not so sure about this."

"I know, mom." Gabe said, just a little frustrated. "But I'd really like this, I want to be much better at karate."

"Are Allie and Ray going?"

"Yeah...but we were told that we are being split up." Gabe said. Not too far from the truth anyway.

"I'm not sure..."

"Please mom. You won't even have to pay."

She hugged him. "There was never a price, Gabey-baby. You can't buy happiness."

Gabe, squeezed by the hug, mumbled, "Oh, well thanks."

"Alright. I'll let you go. But you need to promise that you will really enjoy it, I don't want to send you to a place you don't like."

"Thanks, mom." Gabe said with a smile.

*Ray's New House, about the same time*

"You need to do what?" Ray's mom asked, upset.

"The Duel Masters told me that I have to spend the summer on cleanup." Ray repeated.

"Oh, but Ray...you just got your father back. And you and the others will be separated anyway." she sighed.

"I know, but I don't have a choice." Ray said, sad.

His dad nodded. "It is, well, understandable." He turned to Ray's mom. "And Janet, we will be able to visit him."

She sighed again. "Oh, alright! We'll visit you in fire and nature."

Ray nodded. "You could summon Bob to find me. I think I'll be working with him the most."

His dad nodded and smiled. "Okay. Then it's settled."

Ray ran up to his room and video-chatted Gabe and Allie.

"My dad allowed me, somehow." Allie said. "But I can't complain about it. I think I'll need help with that."

"My mom said okay." Gabe said.

Ray grinned. "My parents both said yes. And they'll visit me too." Allie and Gabe sighed.

"Lucky." Allie muttered.

"So I came up with a schedule." Gabe said. "Every week. Fire/nature, then darkness, then water/light. When we see each other, we can tell when we change civilizations."

"And we'll see each other how?" Allie asked.

"By summoning the creature that the person works with." Gabe said. "For Ray, we'll probably summon Bob. For you, Allie, we'll summon Squeaky. For me, you can summon Gargle. I'll tell you when I switch to light so you can summon someone else."

"Right, because Sasha can't be summoned." Ray remembered.

Allie nodded. "Okay. I guess we're good to go then."

_Good to go. _Ray repeated in his mind. _Good to go._

"I'll talk to you guys later, okay?" Allie said. "I need to pack. And you know, study for the last test before summer."

"Yeah." Gabe said. "Talk to you later."

"Bye, see you at school." Ray said. They all cut off the connection.

"I can't believe this assignment." Ray muttered under his breath. "Nobody likes it and it's so weird!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, next chapter.**

Chapter 2: Last Few Days

"Ray! Do we have practice?" Lucy asked him. Ray sighed.

"Please don't even bring that up." he said, unhappily. "I have to spend an entire summer in the Kaiju realm."

Lucy winced. "Harsh. So who will I duel with?"

"Probably another acolyte." Ray said, shrugging. "I know there are plenty of people who'd duel with you." Lucy nodded.

"Okay." she walked off. Ray trudged to science, which was the last final (test) that he had for the week. Of course, they still had school tomorrow and a little on Friday, but at least it would be partying and fun. Much better than having to dread the test you walk toward.

As Ray sat down, his mind once again wandered to the dreaded assignment. Sure it was necessary, and he'd feel good about helping...but he was worried about it. What if something happened to any one of them? How could they be a team from three different realms? Most of all, would it separate them for good?

Being intuitive, Ray had already realized that school was pulling the three of them apart. In fact, Kaijudo was what had brought them together for the main part. Now that Kaijudo would keep them apart, what would happened to their friendship?

"You may...begin!" the teacher announced. Ray flipped over his test and hoped for the best.

*an hour later, at lunchtime*

Ray sat down next to Allie, who had her face buried in a book. Ray snickered at the sight of his "opposing-all-geeks" friend staring intently at the words. Gabe walked over and gasped.

"Allie...you're reading a book!" Gabe said, shocked.

Allie looked up with a glare of smoldering rage. One that rivaled that of Bob's. "And?" she asked. "What about it?"

"Allie, you never read." Ray said, still snickering. Allie glared at him.

"So what?" Allie challenged. "Even if it is true."

"It's just strange." Ray said, raising his hands in surrender.

Ray and Gabe both looked at Allie nervously, who was glaring murderously. After a few minutes, she just picked up her lunch tray and her book, and sat at the other side of the table.

"Allie..." Ray started. But she ignored him. "Er, what was that all about?"

"I don't know, if we ever tease her she just laughs along usually." Gabe said, cowering still.

Allie did her best to ignore them. She was in a bad mood, and she didn't like yelling at them. But she was stubborn and prideful, and wasn't going to give in to her guilt. She read the words strung together in beautiful sentences, and the world was alright. She wasn't fighting with her friends. She wasn't going to waste her summer on a cleanup job. She wasn't in a foul mood because of a stupid conversation.

Ray looked closely at her. He knew there was something wrong, and he knew she wouldn't answer if he asked. She was as stubborn as a mountain. He looked at Gabe, who thought the exact same thing. No one could crack Allison Underhill.

*next day*

"Woo!" an overexcited Carny shouted. "Partay!"

Everyone laughed and danced at the "almost last day of school" party. For the first time in a while, Allie hung out with Portia and Maribel. They hadn't gotten along for a few years! And it was driving Ray and Gabe nuts.

"I thought they didn't like each other anymore." Ray mumbled.

"Yeah, all the popular girl stuff." Gabe said. He got distracted by a call, and ran outside. Ray sighed.

"Thanks, Gabe." Ray muttered. "Leave me here alone." He looked at Allie, knowing that if she noticed, she would walk over. Even with the "I'm-avoiding-you" attitude. She didn't like people being isolated. But Allie was still ignoring them and hadn't noticed.

Allie was enjoying herself. Portia and Maribel were actually being nice! She remembered why she had been friends with them, and the three girls made up. Even with how close Ray, Allie and Gabe were, she missed being friends with Portia and Maribel. Except for them harassing people about their clothes.

She had been having fun with them, and had stopped them from teasing anyone. She felt good about life for the first time in a while.

She hoped people wouldn't really notice she was ignoring Ray and Gabe. But they knew her so well, how could they not tell what was wrong? And the fact that it was Kaijudo related made her doubly angry. But she wouldn't lose her cool. Allison Underhill had a point to prove to herself. That stupid conversation had gotten to her...but she would do it anyway.

Gabe, outside, pressed the light civilization symbol glowing on his phone. Immediately, a projection of Sasha, Channeler of Light, appeared in front of him.

"Hi Sasha." Gabe said, a smile plastering his face.

"Hello, Gabriel." Sasha said, also smiling. "It is good to see you."

"It's great to see you, too." Gabe said looking, at her happily. Then he straightened. "Right! Uh, you called me?"

"Yes." Sasha said, a little more seriously. "I had heard you will be spending all of your summer vacation in water."

Gabe rubbed his neck. "I guess word travels fast..."

"Will you not spend any free time with me?" the poor creature asked sadly.

"No!" Gabe exclaimed. "I mean, uh, I won't. It's just that water suffered a lot of collateral damage that I would like to help fix. I promise that when I'm finished, I'll come to you in light and spend the rest of my summer with you."

"I am happy to hear that." Sasha said, the smile returning. "And your friends?"

"They are going to different civilizations." Gabe said, with fake nonchalance. "We will visit each other once a week."

"You are sad." Sasha said, ever perceptive. "You wish the three of you would stick together, as humans say?"

"Yeah." Gabe said with a sigh. "The thing is-school is separating us slowly. Kaijudo was one of the things that brought us even closer. But now we aren't spending the summer together." He paused. "And people change. Allie is already ignoring us for some reason, and I'm worried our friendship isn't as strong as it used to be."

Sasha looked sad again. "I am sorry to hear that, Gabriel. Truly."

Gabe jumped back. "Oh but I am sorry that I spent all of your time talking about all of it! I'm sorry!"

Sasha laughed. "You are quite comical, Gabriel. You did not spend my time, I gave it to you. I like talking to you."

Gabe blushed. "Oh. Then, um, thanks."

Sasha smiled at him. "Queen Eternal Haven calls. I will speak to you later, Gabriel." He nodded.

"Talk to you soon, Sasha." Gabe said, and the connection clicked off.

Gabe walked back to see Allie still hanging out with Portia and Maribel. Ray was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, lips pursed.

"Um...are you okay?" Gabe asked, awkwardly.

"Yes, Gabe." Ray said sarcastically. "You left me alone but I'm okay."

Gabe pouted. "Well I'm sorry."

"No." Ray said with a sigh. "I am. I didn't mean that, I'm just...frustrated with life I guess."

Gabe observed him. "You know, usually by now you would walk over and demand to know what's wrong."

"Allie is spending time with her friends." Ray said, poisonous hatred entering his voice. "I won't take her away from them."

*the next day*

"Alright class, settle down!" the teacher said. "Yes, there's five minutes left of school. Yes you're in a rush. But this is still school and you can't be jumpy!"

Ray was staring sullenly at the chalkboard. Gabe was wincing at his expression. Allie was having fun with her new friends.

Er-old, new friends.

Ray was upset that Allie was ignoring them. That was a huge blow to their friendship. To top that off, tomorrow they would leave for the Kaiju realm! They didn't have time for a reconciliation! What was going to happen?

Gabe knew that Ray was upset about Allie. He didn't like when she held out on the two of them, and it wasn't like it hadn't happened before. But Gabe knew that Ray was acting very out of character. He preferred to know everything about a situation. He would ask Allie what was wrong normally. He would make it up to her, and he would do the same for Gabe any day. So why wasn't he?

"10, 9, 8..." Carny and Portia started.

"7, 6, 5..." people joined. Even Ray and Gabe joined.

"4..."

"3..."

"2..."

"ONE!" the class exploded into cheers. They dashed outside and cheered as they left the building.

Most of the kids turned to go home. Like Gabe, Ray and Allie. But before she left, Ray grabbed Allie's wrist. She turned abruptly.

"Allie." Ray said. Allie pursed her lips and looked away.

"What." she said, without showing emotion.

"Will you still visit us?" Ray asked. "Like you promised?" Allie sighed, and she turned back to him.

"I'm a girl of my word." she said. "I'll visit you." She pulled her wrist out of his grip. And started walking away. "But I'm not guaranteeing every week."

Ray looked at her as she walked away, then turned to go home.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks to anyone who has read my chapters so far! Next chapter, coming up.**

Chapter Three: Comfort and Tears

Ray walked home and greeted his parents. He looked around his new house, which they had bought when both his dad and mom got new jobs. His grandpa sat, reading a book. Ray said hi, but quickly went to his room. He knew that the book reminded him of Allie.

Usually, he wouldn't make such a big fuss if one of his friends wanted some time with others. But with a huge separation occurring TOMORROW, he didn't like the fact that it may cause a worse separation than not being in the same realm. One like total friendship disaster.

He sighed and stared at a picture of the three of them. He couldn't get away from his friendship worries. Frustrated, he left his room and joined his parents/grandfather in the kitchen.

"You are having...friend trouble." Grandpa said. Ray winced.

"Am I really that easy to read?" Ray asked, laughing nervously. His mom looked at him worriedly, while his dad winced.

"Yes." his grandpa joked. "But you are not alright."

"Yeah, well..." Ray said. "Tomorrow we'll be splitting up for the summer. We'll meet, but not very often. School is already straining our friendship. And now, something has Allie ticked off and she won't talk to me or Gabe."

"Do you want me to talk to her?" Ray's mom asked. "You know, girl-to-girl."

Ray shook his head. "It's okay. And knowing Allie, she probably won't listen anyway."

"You will see her tomorrow morning, no?" Ray's father said. "At the official see off. You can talk to her."

"Five minutes to make up for three DAYS of fighting?" Ray said. "I'm not sure that will work." He sighed. "But thank you, all of you, for trying to help. You always know how to make me feel better."

His mom hugged him. "Whenever, wherever."

"We are here for you." his grandpa said. His father ruffled his hair.

"This is what family is for." his father told him.

*next morning, going to the temple*

Ray's parents drove him to the temple in their new car. The old one had gotten extremely dented when Ray's father pulled them up when he had been evolved with Humonculon. So dented, the repair shop called it "sheet metal beyond repair".

Ray fingered his backpack subconsciously. He couldn't stop thinking about how crazy this summer was going to be. A summer to remember, for sure.

They stopped in front of the karate studio. Ray smiled at them, said goodbye, then went inside. Allie and Gabe were already there, looking at Master Kimora, and standing as faraway from each other as possible.

Ray stood in the middle of them, facing Master Kimora.

"Hello Raiden." Master Kimora said. "The other masters will join us shortly."

First came Master Chavez, followed by Master Nadia. Ray noticed Allie smiling devilishly at the two of them. Ray looked back to see his great-uncle Isao standing next to Master Kimora. Last but not least, ever, was Master Jaha, looking much better since the spell of Radiant Purification.

"We will see each of you off, starting with Gabriel." Master Chavez said. The three of them nodded and followed the masters to Master Nadia's office. The masters each wished him good luck, Gabe summoned Gargle and then waved as he banished himself and Gargle.

"He realized that he forgot to wear the water suit, right?" Ray said, biting back a grin.

Master Chavez smiled. "He'll remember. Now for Allison."

They walked, following Master Jaha, to the darkness cave. They entered slowly, but Allie looked as confident as she had ever been. Master Isao looked closely at her, understanding she was trying to prove something to someone. Maybe even herself.

"Scaradorable of Gloom Hollow!" Allie summoned. Squeaky chittered happily. Allie smiled at her.

"Yeah, hugs. But let's go to darkness first." she told Squeaky. She banished Squeaky wordlessly, and faded into darkness.

Ray took a deep breath while following Master Chavez. "Nervous, are we?" Master Kimora said to him. Ray pursed his lips and looked away.

"Now, now Raiden." Master Isao said. "You must not be frightened. You must complete this with your duty at heart."

"And fiery feelings." Master Nadia said. Master Chavez snorted.

"Ray is not missing those." he muttered under his breath.

Ray sighed. "Yeah. I will." As they entered, Ray summoned Bob and banished them back to fire.

*with Gabe, in Water*

The moment he felt the cold water touch his skin, he realized he wasn't wearing a water suit. He yelped, mouth closed, to Gargle, who gave him the water suit bubble, allowing Gabe to breath again.

"Thanks, Gargle." Gabe said, sighing. "You're a life saver."

"Anytime, G-abriel!" Gargle said, being adorable.


	4. Chapter 4

**Man! I lost this chapter twice! Well third time's the charm, right...?**

Chapter Four: Water Repair (Week 1)

Gabe typed something into the tablet Gargle gave him. It projected images of the battered palace, some of the city in ruins, and even Tritonus' throne.

"Wow. Even more damage than I thought." Gabe said, inspecting the projections.

Gargle nodded. "Yes, G-abriel. Correct."

Gabe sighed. "I hope I can help."

"Friends always help, G-abriel." Gargle told him, being adorable as usual. Gabe smiled at him before calculating the amount of time he had to stay.

"With all of the water creatures, the tools and the calculations...it should take seven weeks." Gabe estimated. Then he sighed. "At best."

"Don't worry G-abriel!" Gargle said. "With new level ups, water civilization XP is higher! More XP means faster and better!"

Gabe laughed. "Okay Gargle. Let's do it!"

* * *

><p>Gabe, on a terrace-thing, looked at a group of Trench Hunters. They all used telekinesis to fix the damaged buildings and machinery of the water civilization.<p>

"What if the Buoyant Blowfishes worked on the north side of the tower?" Gabe asked Gargle.

Gargle shook his head. "They would have errors in small space. Problem, OMG!" Gabe sort of snickered, sort of sighed at him.

"Okay, so what if the Reef-Eye worked there? Because something needs to hold up that side."

Gargle buzzed funnily. "Searching, searching...results...it is ok! TTIN. Talk to it now." He went to the Reef-Eye to talk. Gargle smiled at his little friend. Gargle was so cute, but so scatterbrained. Comical too.

Gabe did a full 360 turn to see all of the building going on. Anyone would be amazed with water's ability to rebuild after a storm of destruction. They were always inventing, always able to solve problems. A tech sphere that could fuse materials into an invention that a creature thinks of. A device that amplifies telepathy and telekinesis powers.

_If humans could do this, _Gabe thought. _Imagine the progress we could make. The world would be so much more efficient and orderly._

"Done!" Gargle chattered happily. "Reef-Eye has downloaded plan! It will work now!" Gabe smiled.

"Great. Thanks, Gargle." he said.

Suddenly, a small package floated towards him. Gabe rolled his eyes. "Well you sure took your time, masters." he muttered under his breath. He snatched the package and opened it to find food, water and a card.

"Food will sustain G-abriel for one meal." Gargle deduced.

Gabe smiled at him before opening the card. He read it out loud.

"Dear Gabey-baby,

I hope this is the right address. So how is karate camp? Are you enjoying yourself? I know it's only been a day but I'm worried.

This letter will be short, and I know you can't reply soon. But please let me know, okay? I love you.

Love, Mom

P.S. Come home soon, baby brother! There's no one to tease without you. This is Donald and Ronald."

Gabe sighed. "Wow. Only a day and they're already checking on me." He took paper from the package, which surprisingly didn't get soaked, and wrote a simple letter saying he was fine and didn't care if there was no one to tease.

Gabe put the letter he wrote in the package and turned to Gargle. "Can you send this?" Gabe asked. Gargle buzzed, his brain lighting up. The package disappeared.

"Thanks, Gargle." Gabe said again, patting his friend on the head.

A creature swam up. Gargle buzzed in response, then turned to Gabe. "The Saucer Head Shark wants to know when they will fix the next tower."

"When this is done..." Gabe said. "I think."

Gargle buzzed to the Saucer Head Shark, and it swam away. "Does it have a connection to that building?" Gabe asked.

"IDK. No results." Gargle said.

Gabe pursed his lips. "Alright. Today we are almost done with northeastern quadrant. By tomorrow, it can be completely fixed." He sighed. "And the northeastern quadrant took the least damage of the quadrants, only about three buildings fell."

Gargle's head lit up, showing that he was telling King Tritonus. "Message received!"

"Thanks Gargle." Gabe said, for the umpteenth time. "I really don't know what this would be like without you."

Gargle smiled-ish. "No prob! Water is rebuilding! Morale increased!" Gabe laughed.

"You're right, you little scatterbrain." he responded.

*at the end of the third day*

"Report, G-abriel?" Gargle asked.

"Yeah, about two of the buildings in the north western quadrant are fixed. Of three hundred." Gabe replied.

Gargle buzzed and sent the message to King Tritonus. "Progress is moderate!"

Gabe nodded. "Yeah, but I think we can increase speed once the creatures gain experience from building."

Gargle buzzed happily as Gabe went back to his special room he was given to stay in.

Another small package floated down. Gabe opened it and set the food aside. There was another letter, from his mom.

"Dear Gabey-baby,

I'm happy you're having fun. The moment you aren't, I'll say you need to come home, got it?

Have you gotten to see Allie or Ray? If their parents haven't talked to them, make sure you comfort them. Not all parents have the time I'm lucky enough to give you...

Tell me if you need anything.

Love,

Mom"

Gabe sighed and lied down. "Fun." he muttered. "So much fun."

* * *

><p>Gabe woke up when Gargle buzzed into his ear.<p>

"Wakey Wakey, G-abriel!" Gargle said. "We have levels to defeat! LOL, you are barely awake."

Gabe sigheda nod got up reluctantly. "Only with the masters am I waking up early to help plan building schedules."

"Correct! Next question: are you ready?" Gargle said.

"Yes, Gargle." Gabe said, a little annoyed, a little amused. "I'm ready to go."

**Sorry it's taken me so much time. I typed out a lot but when my safari crashed, I lost all my progress. Plus I had to study for midterms, so yeah. Sorry again.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Here we go, another part.**

Chapter Five: Days of Darkness (Week 1)

Allie had been practically taken in by Queen Kalima. She gave Allie a place to stay, a few jobs, and even an order that stated no darkness creature could hurt her.

In other words, Allie felt just as weak as before.

_"You're nothing without Ray and Gabe."_

_"You couldn't take care of yourself if you tried."_

_"Queen Kalima was so worried, she ordered darkness creatures to not hurt you."_

Allie wanted to scream. The stupid voices, the stupid conversation, the stupid darkness she felt bubbling inside her. But as any warrior, she put a on a happy face (more like stern face) and did what she could.

She sorted out the sections of darkness, finding most pretty intact. "Where would I go?" she murmured. "After I am done, I'm supposed to go to another civilization. But risk being with Ray and Gabe? What do I do?"

"You wish not to be with your best friends?" a ghost-like voice echoed into the room. Allie didn't flinch.

"None of your business. Get out of here, Slyth." Allie retorted.

"Harsh words." Slyth said.

"Just. Leave. Please." Allie hissed.

"But I cannot. My master has sent me here to give you a package." Slyth said. Allie forced herself to cool her anger before turning to him.

"Okay. May I please have it?" she said, sarcasm slightly seeping into her voice.

"Here." he said. Allie took it and set down.

"Thank you Slyth. You can go now." Allie told him, narrowing her eyes. Slyth, liking to stay out of trouble, melted into shadow.

"Goodbye, Allison. I will return with your next package later."

Allie opened it to find food and water, and a letter. She had told her dad not to send her letters, so she was a little mad. She read the letter.

"Dear Allie,

This isn't your dad, sorry. He told me he wasn't supposed to write you letters so I got worried and all.

Oh Allie, I'm so sorry about your fight with Ray and Gabe. You have been best friends forever, and they were upset. Ray told me not to talk to you but what was I supposed to do? Let it go?

Allie, Ray needs you. Gabe does to. I know Ray needs you for a fact. Your friendship is a cushion they depend on you for. They are stronger when all three of you work together. Your spirits can't be subdued when you three are together. So please, go through with visiting them. I'm not sure they would take it well if you didn't show.

Please.

Sincerely,

Janet Pierce-Okamoto"

Allie just stared at the letter, as if waiting for something else to pop out. "As if. Either of them actually need me." Allie said, defiantly. "I don't need them either!"

She folded the letter and stuck it into the package. She frowned at it. "It's not getting to me." she said, like a chant. "It's not getting to me. It's not getting to me."

She walked out, kneeled in front of Queen Kalima, then looked up for orders. Queen Kalima looked down at her.

"You are to go to Bleak Trestle today." she informed her. "Do you need transportation?"

Allie, clenching her fists without letting Queen Kalima see, shook her head. "No, your majesty. I think I can handle it."

The Queen looked amused. "Is that so."

"Yes." Allie said. She faltered. "But I will need to siphon some mana. Not the way the masters used to!" She clarified. "I know your mana is recovering from the monarchs slumbering in the Null Zone. Just...a little."

Queen Kalima still looked at her, amused. "Alright."

Allie took a breath, then touched her. Her body felt like it wanted to explode! Like a hundred volts of electricity, shock struck through her body. She pulled her hand away and bowed to Queen Kalima. A glance to her gauntlet. The violet purple had darkened significantly, matching he cloak of dark illusion. Like a shadow, it melted almost into her hand. The symbol glowed brightly, and small chinks made up the fingers.

"Thank you, your majesty." Allie said.

"If you cannot tell, you are my favored." she said. "A little speck, bold enough to defy everyone and return my cloak. You are not weak. I do not favor those who are weak."

It caught Allie off guard, but she recovered within seconds. "Thank you, your majesty. I am honored that you favor me. I will not fail you."

"I should hope not." Kalima said, disappearing into her palace. "There is very little of darkness that has any damage."

Allie winced. She didn't want to hear that when she was trying to avoid Gabe and Ray.

"Alright." Allie said. "Totally more awesome gauntlet and power. So I'll summon Locomotivator?"

She sighed, glancing at her gauntlet. "Please don't fail me. Locomotivator of Bleak Trestle!" she shouted. She stood aside as the train-looking creature came through the veil.

"Let's go to Bleak Trestle." she said to the train-like tarborg. She hopped on and held her arm out, and Locomotivator took her to Bleak Trestle. She summoned Squeaky along the way, not offering hugs.

"I'm sorry, Squeaky." Allie said, pushing her away. "But I can't. But please, can you defend Locomotivator while we go to Bleak Trestle?"

Squeaky nodded, sad. She changed into her battle form and stood back to back with Allie.

As they reached Bleak Trestle, Allie jumped down and scanned the area. "Okay, we'll need to heal a few creatures. Caves need to be supported. And I think we should clear the rubble."

Squeaky hissed and narrowed her eyes. Allie turned around. "What is it? What happened?" she asked.

"You're lucky to have her, Allison." an all too familiar voice echoed. "You couldn't do any of this without the little creature."

Allie snarled and prepared to fight, Squeaky ready next to her. "Come out. I've had enough of you!"

"I may have lost everything, Allison," the creature said, stepping out. "But I can still end you."

"You wish, Megaria!" Allie said, snarling. "How have you gotten into my house? How were you there?"

"The better question: where are your friends? The ones you will die without?" Megaria laughed. "Oh I forgot, I cannot hurt you by the order of Queen Kalima herself!"

Allie couldn't move. "Lemme guess. You're still looking for that protege."

"Hm? Are you interested?" Megaria said, smiling sinisterly.

"What if I am?" Allie said. "I could ask Queen Kalima. You've always wanted me as your protege, why?"

"Because you're a human whose footsteps even resonate in darkness." Megaria said. "I don't think you realize. You as well have been born of darkness. And now, I will kill you for being so close to the Queen!"

But a tarborg came up to her. "Oh, alright." Megaria hissed. She turned to Allie. "I'm sorry, but the Queen needs me. This isn't over, Allison."

Allie stared after her, clenching her fists.

*a few days later*

"Wow, have we made that much progress?" Allie asked the Queen.

"Yes. We are almost a third of the way complete." Queen Kalima said. Allie bits her lip and looked down.

"That is great news your majesty." Allie said. "I ask of you a favor, as weak as it will make me sound."

"Speak, child."

"I wish to take tomorrow to visit my friends." Allie said, biting her lip. "I had given them my word, and I do not dishonor my promises."

"Permitted. Are you going every human week?"

"I don't think so. I was planning that, but I feel more comfortable in darkness." The Queen laughed.

"Comfort? In darkness? I can see true dark in you. It has once again become clear why you are my favored."

Allie forced a smile. "Of course your majesty. Tomorrow I will go in the name of darkness, and return bearing my honor and strength. I will honor your favor in me."

"Good." the Queen disappeared into darkness once more. Allie sighed at the emptiness before her.

"They will see just how tough Allison Underhill gets when she finds herself." Allie whispered.


	6. Chapter 6

**New chapter! I know I totally suck at posting often, but...okay I don't have an excuse. Sorry! But I hope you like!**

Chapter Six: The Fury of Fire

"Wow, they've made progress!" Ray commented. He rode on Tatsurion as he flew over the Fire Civilization.

"Of course." Tatsurion dismissed. "Fire roars through every war, no matter how much damage. They don't care too much for the quality of anything except where Infernus now stays."

"No luck with the artifacts?" Ray asked.

"No." Tatsurion said. "All five civilizations were lucky to retrieve our monarchs. The artifacts are lost."

Ray nodded. "I've been feeling that way about a lot of things lately."

Tatsurion semi-chuckled. "What has you thinking like that?" He became serious. "Do you need me to smash someone's face in?"

Ray shook his head. "No, no. Just...friend problems I guess."

A missile shot at them, piercing the sky. Tatsurion shot a rocket back, making a huge explosion.

"Bob, what was that?" Ray asked, narrowing his eyes.

He held his position. "I am not sure. I think it may be a vengeful dragon. Moorna perhaps." Ray softened.

"I'm really sorry, Bob." he said. "I don't get why they won't except you. You're part of their family."

He snorted. "I'm a disgrace to them. It doesn't matter."

"Even with the pure-bred dragon status?" Ray whined.

"Don't whine. We have a city to rebuild." he chided.

Ray sighed. "You're right, Bob. Sorry." Tatsurion shook his head.

"There is nothing to apologize for."

"So what are we doing?" Ray asked.

"By the looks of it, it seems we will be asked to help with the marketplace." he replied. "And the palace, of course. No creature is spared from fixing the palace."

"Alright." he agreed. "Hey, how's Skycrusher?"

"I haven't spoken to him, and don't plan on it. Let's meet with Infernus." Tatsurion said, monotonously.

Ray nodded. They landed near the palace, where the guards let them in. It was no secret how grudgingly they did, Tatsurion's constant escape from getting caught when he had a price on his head had given them reason to dislike him. Skycrusher was a harsh Lord to work for.

As they entered, Ray marveled at the progress of rebuilding the palace. His visit to rescue...Allie...hadn't given him a chance to admire the palace or the creatures' ability to rebuild.

"Ah, yes tiny one." Infernus roared. "Welcome back to the fire civilization. Why have you come?"

"I am here to help with the rebuilding of fire until the end of sumer in the human world." Ray said. "If we are done before the end of summer, I'll go to the nature civilization."

"An interesting assignment. Very well." Infernus said, amused. "Although I don't quite see how a tiny one like you could rebuild a civilization with dragons."

Ray chuckled slightly and shrugged. "I know. But I will give all the effort I have."

"Good enough. You will work with Tatsurion. You are dismissed." Infernus said. Ray left, then climbed back onto Tatsurion's back.

Tatsurion noticed something shaking, and swooped down to see. He picked up a steel plate and found a small creature. The creature smiled sheepishly.

"Thank you, Tatsurion sir." the creature said.

"Who are you?" Ray asked.

"My son." another creature walked up. Ray's jaw dropped.

"Aren't you...Vorg?" Ray asked. "Like tried to cook Squeaky and Allie, Vorg?"

He glared back. "Lord Skycrusher's meal should not have escaped." He then smiled at his son. "My son has improved his cooking. He will replace me one day."

The small Vorg nodded happily.

Ray shivered, creeped out by the lookalike-ness of Vorg's son. "Perhaps your son should be more careful with steel plates larger than himself." Tatsurion said, looking at Vorg.

"Yes sir, Tatsurion sir!" the mini-Vorg said, all perky.

Tatsurion and Ray walked away. "That...was creepy." Ray said to him. "He looked so alike! But he had a totally different personality! How did that not affect you in the slightest, Bob?"

Tatsurion snorted. "I do not understand what you found creepy."

"Nothing?" Ray said, appalled. "Nothing at all?"

Tatsurion chuckled. "It doesn't quite matter. After all, we do have a city to rebuild."

* * *

><p>After a few days, the marketplace was starting to be rebuilt.<p>

"Tatsurion." a dragon said. "I see you have returned."

"I have been here all week, Morkaz." Tatsurion said, distastefully.

"A friend?" Ray whispered.

"No. One of the ones who can't stand me." Tatsurion replied. Ray winced.

The huge dragon chuckled. "Now don't be so harsh, tiny brother. You have gained your wings, and are considered a pure dragon. Why should I consider you otherwise."

"I am not sure." Tatsurion said, darkly. "But no dragon changes views that easily. I cannot trust that you don't still want me dead to purify your bloodline."

"Our bloodline. It is already pure." Morkaz responded harshly. "If you don't believe so, ask our ruler."

"Moorna didn't listen." Tatsurion reminded.

"Bob, this is getting you...us...nowhere. He accepts you." Ray said.

"If Carny started treating you like a best friend..." Ray winced again. "...would you accept it? Would you think he is actually being nice, not manipulating you?"

"Point taken." he replied. "But this is family. Carny is a bully."

"Listen to the human, Tatsurion." Morkaz said. "Unless you don't trust your brother."

"Half-brother." Tatsurion muttered. The dragon roared.

"You dare mention the fact that you have other family!" Morkaz thundered.

"See?!" Tatsurion said to Ray. Ray grimaced. "Okay, point taken again."

"I challenge you to a duel, right here and now!" Morkaz roared.

"Here?! Now?!" Tatsurion said, exasperated. "We're trying to rebuild Blast Forge City. Not destroy it!" The dragon let out a small laugh-sounding sound.

"Of course not. We will meet...there."

Tatsurion nodded. "Alright."

"Bob!" Ray exclaimed.

"Ray, I have to fight him. I can't let him get away with..."

"Kidnapping your family?" the dragon said, rudely. "Helping Moorna? Or perhaps when I beat you in battle...?" Tatsurion roared a fearsome roar.

"Let's go!" Tatsurion shouted. Ray hopped onto his back as the pair of warriors took flight, racing to the battleground. "He needs to be taken down." Tatsurion muttered to Ray, almost apologetically.

"It's okay Bob." Ray whispered back.

"You can't be on my bak when I fight him. Just in case." he commanded. "And you will watch from a safe distance so you can go to Infernus. Just in case."

Ray's heart beat quicker. "He wouldn't kill...?"

"Yes, he would." Tatsurion muttered darkly, before setting Ray down. Tatsurion flew over, a bit far, and faced Morkaz the Defiant. "Bob, wait!" Ray screamed. But the Quillspike-dragon was out of earshot.

"Three...two...one." Morkaz said. The two went straight to combat, Tatsurion lighting himself on fire.

"Bob..." Ray said, actually scared for his partner.

The dragons roared as the attacked. When Tatsurion would shoot missiles, Morkaz would repel them with his wings. When Morkaz would roar fire, Tatsurion would dodge and retaliate. The pair attacked each other, missile after punch after fire after flaming spikes after wing shield.

It didn't take long for the two of them to both have fire dancing across their bodies. Their only goal: win. No losing allowed. Just as Napalmeon the Conquering would've decided.

It seemed that Morkaz was gaining the upper hand. Tatsurion roared in pain when the fire breath hit him in the eyes. Tatsurion flew upward to dodge an attack, rubbing his stinging eyes.

"Bob!" Ray shouted. Morkaz turned toward him, glaring.

"Do not interrupt out fight, puny one." the dragon said with contempt.

"Don't you dare talk to him like that!" Tatsurion said, even more enraged. "You have no right to speak to someone like him in that kind of tone!"

Morkaz, finding an opportunity, went after Ray. Ray gasped and started running. "NO!" Tatsurion screamed. He tore after the sneaky dragon.

"Leave." Tatsurion blasted a missile at his wing. "Him." Tatsurion came in front of Ray. "ALONE!" Tatsurion burst into a flame, shooting missiles and spikes and roaring fire at the dragon. They all hit him, pushing him back.

The large dragon hit the ground, causing an earthquake-like shake.

"I win." Tatsurion said, fire burning brightly.

"Thanks Bob." Ray said, breathing heavily.

"You...idiotic...abomination!" Morkaz snarled. "My...body feels...so weak!"

"When you threaten those I protect, you will fall." Tatsurion said, almost heartlessly. "You may be my brother, but you can't do that to Ray."

The dragon snorted. "You win, Tatsurion. But don't think this is over. My brothers are sisters will come after you."

"Moorna was the only one who ever even gave you a second glance." Tatsurion said.

Ray sighed. "Your family..." Ray fell over.

"Ray!" Tatsurion screamed.

"My leg..." Ray moaned. Fire had scalded the leg, and it was bleeding. The veil opened, where the smiling Janet Pierce-Okamoto and Ken Okamoto came through. Then they saw Ray.

"RAY!" Janet screamed.

"You must get the masters, with supplies!" Tatsurion shouted.

Ken ran back through the veil. Janet held Ray, tears streaming down her face. "Mom...I'm okay." Ray said, but pain covering his face. She sobbed harder.

"If your leg gets infected..."

"Please don't finish that sentence." Tatsurion said. "This is all my fault. My big ego, and-"

"Bob, this is SO not your fault." Ray said. "It was that overgrown lizard's." Tatsurion snorted.

"That's true."

Ken ran back through the veil, with Master Chavez. They treated his leg, gently but firmly. Ken had to console his poor, sobbing wife.

"You'll be alright, Raiden." Master Chavez said. "It just needs time to heal. The healing process should take a few days."

Ray nodded. Tatsurion nodded too. "I will make sure no harm comes to him. His friends will be here in two days, as well." Master Chavez sighed.

"Good. Here's your package. I have to go." And with that Master Chavez was gone.

"You'll be okay." Ken said. Janet and Ken helped him onto Bob, and the four of them returned to Blast Forge City.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven: We All Make Up!...Or Not?

Gabe smiled at Gargle as he prepared to summon Bob and see Ray. Maybe even Allie. "Okay Gargle, I'm trusting you have everything under control."

Gargle buzzed. "Of course, G-abriel. Gargle can handle it."

Gabe laughed. "Alright, alright."

He took a deep breath and summoned... "Tatsurion, the Unchained!"

* * *

><p>Allie paced her room. "I have to go. I promised. Can I face them? Am I strong without them?" Then she punched the wall. "No doubting myself! I am strong without them! I'm only going because I promised."<p>

She sighed. "I'm so conflicted." she muttered. Squeaky, who stood near her, squeaked.

"I know, Squeaky. I'm just...confused. With myself. I'll get over it."

Squeaky squeaked and nodded.

Allie turned around. "See you in a bit, Squeaky."

"Tatsurion, the Unchained!"

* * *

><p>Ray sat on his bed, pouting. "Mom, I'm slightly injured. I'm not dying. You can go now."<p>

"Oh Ray, I'm so worried." Janet Pierce-Okamoto said. "I just..."

"I can take care of him." Tatsurion's gruff voice echoed in the room. "His friends will be here soon."

Janet sighed, but nodded. "Alright. I'm going back." She kissed Ray's forehead. "Stay safe, okay?" Ray nodded and smiled at her.

"See you soon." he responded.

Gabe's voice sounded through the veil. Tatsurion disappeared and reappeared with Gabe.

"Hi Ray! How has your week been? We've made a lot of progress in-" he stopped short. "What happened to your leg?!" Ray sighed.

"A vengeful dragon. But it's okay." Ray said.

Gabe had a total panic attack. "Dragon?! A dragon burnt your leg?! You got it cleaned right?!"

"Calm down! It's okay!" Ray said, laughing.

Gabe sighed. "Only you Ray. Only you."

Then, Allie's voice rung through the veil. As Tatsurion went to retrieve her, the boys gawked. "Sh-she's coming?" Gabe said in a hushed voice.

Ray stared at the spot Tatsurion had left, who then rematerialized with Allie.

Allie walked away from Tatsurion, folded her arms, and stared at the two boys. "Well? How's cleanup for you two?" The boys looked at each other, then back to Allie.

Tatsurion, sensing the tension in the air, left the room.

"Allie...I didn't think you'd come. You're actually talking to us." Ray said, pretty abruptly.

"I told you I'd come occasionally. And what do you mean I'm "actually talking to" you?" she replied, her face still expressionless.

Ray stood up and hugged her. Her expression turned to shock, but she didn't hug him back. Gabe smiled. Ray would finally ask what had happened. Everything was going to be alright.

But then what kind of story would this be?

Allie pulled away, tilting her head. "Hm?"

"Why were you ignoring us?" Ray asked, pleading. "Allie, you're our friend. We were so worried. What happened? We didn't mean to offend you."

Allie snorted. She leaned against the wall. "Whatever."

Ray bit his lip so he wouldn't explode. "What happened to your leg?" Allie asked.

"A dragon burnt it." Gabe explained, the short way. Allie snickered.

"Lemme guess, Bob was going after a dragon who offended his family." she said, smirking.

_What's with her?_ Ray thought. _She's being rude! She isn't usually this cold. What does she know anyway?_ Instead of saying that (surprisingly), he just shook his head.

"He was talking to a dragon and mentioned that he was a Quillspike, and the dragon exploded." Ray said. "They fought each other and Bob won. But the dragon went after me and managed to burn my leg."

"Hm." Allie said.

Gabe looked at Ray's face being contorted. _Oh boy. He's getting frustrated._ Gabe thought.

"So...how's cleanup...at water, Gabe?" Ray said, still trying to keep his anger down.

"Really good!" Gabe said, attempting to sound perky. "We finished repairing the northeastern quadrant!" He sighed. "Even then, that was the least damaged section..."

Ray laughed. "Well at least you're progressing. Some creatures can't even help! They're too tiny!"

Allie snickered. "Like mini-Vorg?"

Ray looked at her, taken-aback. "How'd you know about Vorg's son?"

"Wait, wait. Vorg has a _son_?!" Gabe said, appalled.

"Right?" Ray said to him.

"Yeah he does, and he's a great chef. He came to ask for some help from Queen Kalima." Allie explained. "He isn't exactly fit to build a city."

Ray smiled. He considered smiling at her, but she would ignore him. "I'll say. Bob had to lift a steel plate off of him." Allie snorted again.

Ray wanted to yell and scream. But they were hurting enough. He wanted to tell Gabe that he was frustrated. But yet, he thought maybe Gabe had already figured that out.

Gabe winced as Ray thought. Ray was mad, explaining his expression, and Allie was enjoying it. _What kind of point is she trying to prove, anyway?_, Gabe thought. _I don't get it._

Allie nonchalantly watched their faces. _Do I feel...bad?_, Allie thought. She mentally cursed herself. _No, you don't! Are you strong or not?! In the end, they'll abandon me. I'm so supportive of Ray, but he never noticed how I feel. _She winced. _That's not true. He can tell when something's wrong. But am I such a good actor that he can't tell I'm being tortured by dreams? By voices? All the time?!_

"Allie is thinking more than usual." Gabe muttered under his breath. "She isn't even moving."

"Hm?" Allie inquired, tilting her head.

"Nothing!" Gabe said, a little louder than he had meant.

"Do you not want me here?" Allie asked. She raised an eyebrow. "You guys are so silent, it's hard to believe it. And I'ms standing here."

Ray shook his head. _No. That isn't what I want. I just want to know what's going on. But Allie is trying to make it seem like nothing's wrong._, Ray thoought, frustrated.

"It's...tense in here." Tatsurion said, glancing in. "I didn't hear laughing and I became worried."

Ray smiled at him. "It's nice of you to notice Bob, but don't worry. Everything is fine. Great." Ray forced out. Tatsurion looked curiously at him, but left anyway.

"Friend problems." Tatsurion muttered, out of earshot from the three teens.

**Okay, that's done! More on the meeting in the next post.**


	8. Chapter 8

**I officially hate Flappy Bird. It made my Safari crash and I had to start all over. *Sigh* Here we go.**

Chapter Eight: A Fire Burning of Darkness

Ray lied down and stared at the ceiling. Gabe fiddled with his phone. Allie played with the bracelet around her wrist. In short, a more awkward moment than it should have been.

Gabe's eyes widened and he ran out of the room. "Sasha." Allie and ray said at the same time. Ray looked at her, but she stared at her wrist.

Ray lied back down, sighing. Then in frustration, he scrunched his face and sat up. "That's it! Allie, I challenge you to a duel!" Ray shouted.

Allie glanced over, amused. "The natural is swooping so low as to duel me?" Ray glared at her. "Alright, alright. I accept. But we can't exactly duel here."

Ray nodded. "Yeah. Come on." he said. He walked up to Tatsurion, who looked at him curiously.

"Bob, can you take us to where you fought Morkaz?" Ray asked. Tatsurion sighed.

"A duel? Really?" Tatsurion asked. "What for anyway?"

"Bob..." Ray pleaded.

"I'm taking you, I'm taking you." Bob said with a sigh. Allie and Ray hopped onto his back. "So I'm dueling for you?"

"No." Ray said, with a small smile. "You're dueling with me, remember?" Tatsurion grunted, and he took off. Allie snorted at Ray's comment, which drove him nuts. It took a lot of willpower to keep his anger under control.

As they landed, Allie jumped off, flipped in midair, and landed. She turned on her gauntlet and summoned- "Scaradorable of Gloom Hollow!"

Tatsurion grunted at Ray. "See her gauntlet?"

"Yeah, it's advanced." Ray said, through pursed lips. "She's siphoned mana from Kalima. I was wondering why she seemed to have more mana than usual."

Back with Gabe (Ha ha, sorry), he pressed the light symbol.

"Hi Sasha!" he said, happily.

"Hello, Gabriel. I wondered if you have made up with your friends?" Sasha inquired.

"Allie's being cold, and it's getting on Ray's nerves." he replied, sadly. "I don't know what's with her. Ray has gone ballistic trying to get her to explain herself. I wouldn't be surprised if he was yelling at her right now."

"I am sorry to hear that." Sasha responded, sadly.

"B-but I don't mean to complain!" Gabe quickly covered. "I mean...everything is okay, and all..."

Sasha laughed. "You are quite comical Gabriel. I inquired of you, you do not need to get flustered."

He blushed. "Er...yeah."

"I...also wanted to tell you...the last time I was in conversation with Allison, she seemed...different. Like her mind was in chaos." she commented.

Gabe gasped. "What if she's being controlled by a darkness creature."

"That would not be good!"

"I have to go and talk to her!"

"Alright, and I must go as well."

"I'll talk to you later, Sasha."

The light creature smiled. "As to you, Gabriel." Gabe cut off the connection and ran back as fast as he could. When he reached the room, he saw his worst fears had come true.

They were already gone.

Ray held onto Tatsurion, preparing for Allie's attack. Squeaky emerged from the shadows and squeaked happily at Allie.

"No time for hugs, Squeaky." Allie dismissed. Squeaky looked at Ray and chittered questioningly. "I know, I know. He challenged me okay? Let's just duel."

Squeaky changed into battle form, Allie hopped onto her, and the duelists circled around each other.

"I don't get you, Allie." Ray said, harshly. "I thought we were so close. I didn't realize how little I understood you." Allie smirked slightly, as Ray finished, "You just shut us out. It's really not fair."

"I really don't care." Allie snorted. "Come on squeaky, shadow trick." Squeaky shook her head. Allie sighed, annoyed. "I know you don't think we're ready, but I know we are." She gave Squeaky a little extra mana. Squeaky shuddered, but sunk into shadows.

"Where did they go?" Ray asked. Tatsurion flew upward. Allie popped out of a shadow behind where they were before, and told Squeaky to use her sonic scream.

Tatsurion blocked it with his wings and Ray put up a mana shield. "What is with her?!" Ray hissed.

"SHe's your friend." Tatsurion said. "You've known her longer. Why are you asking me?"

"I don't know her!" Ray yelled in frustration. "We've been distanced by school! We barely even talk anymore!" Allie, hearing this, clenched her fists.

"I knew it." she said. "I knew he didn't care." She growled. "Squeaky, fear bats."

Squeaky let out a few bats tentatively. "Seriously?!" Allie yelled. "He's the enemy, Squeaky! I know you don't like it but you're gonna have to attack...now!"

Squeaky let out more fear bats this time, Tatsurion flying to avoid them.

"Well why didn't you talk to her about it?" Tatsurion asked. "Maybe she's upset that you three are distancing. Do you have other friends or something?"

"No." Ray said, dejectedly. "Gabe has his computers and Sasha. Allie has Portia and Maribel. I don't talk to anyone besides Allie and Gabe."

Tatsurion stopped at his friend's change in attitude. "Wait, you think they aren't spending time with you?"

"No." Ray sighed. "They are, but we're...so different now. It's only been three months since the Choten pulled the evolution stunt, but it's been enough to separate us. I don't know what to do."

Tatsurion sighed. "Have you considered talking to them?"

Ray shrugged. "I guess..."

Tatsurion sighed again, theatrically may I add. "Are you serious?! They will understand if you talk to them!"

Ray glanced at his hands. "You're right. If I surrender to Allie, do you think she'd talk to me?"

"Surrender?" Tatsurion winced. Ray laughed.

"Okay, we'll fight. And then I'll make sure she talks to me." Ray said, confidently.

Meanwhile, everyone's favorite geek was running with a fire guard to where the two best friends were supposedly fighting. Hoping he could talk to Allie.

**Okay, I know. I'm a horrible person for not posting for so long. In a few weeks, things should start moving at a better pace. Sorry again.**

**-Phantom**


	9. Chapter 9

**Okay, let's do this!**

Chapter Nine: The Truth (Part One)

Allie launched another wave of fear bats, just before they did the shadow trick and popped up on a mountain nearby. Now at the level which Ray and Tatsurion were at, Allie instructed Squeaky to jump onto them.

Tatsurion yelped and started to plummet.

"Bob!" Ray cried. He turned to Allie and screamed, "Are you crazy?! We'll all die!" Allie glowered at him and she jumped off Squeaky.

"Squeaky, go home." Allie banished the poor darkness creature and advanced toward Ray. Tatsurion steadied himself as Squeaky faded into shadow.

"You...you banished her?" Ray asked, confused.

"I'd prefer if my creature didn't interfere." Allie said. "But I do think I will summon another." She thought for a second, then smiled.

"Necrodragon of Vile Ichor!" Allie called. The Terror Dragon materialized and roared a spirit shattering roar. Ray's eyes widened.

"How could you?!" he shouted. "That dragon...that's the dragon Fingers used to attack Sasha and the citadel! You're using a creature that hurt one of our friends!"

Allie raised an eyebrow. "Are you serious? That's your first thought?" She shook her head with a sigh. "Wow. Come on, let's just duel before you lecture me on the bonds of loyalty or whatever."

Ray growled. "Bob, she's making it REALLY hard not to hurt her."

Tatsurion just shook his head. "We have to duel. Aren't you trying to fix the friendship?"

Ray sighed. "I want to talk to her. But it seems like it's not going to happen."

"I'm right here you know." Allie said, twirling her gauntlet. "If you want to talk, I'm here. Not going to benefit you, probably, but I'm right here."

"Fine. Time out." Ray said. "You snapped at me and Gabe. Mind telling me why?"

"Because you were bothering me." Allie replied, coldly. Both Tatsurion and Ray winced at the cold, harsh response. It wasn't hard for that to hurt.

"Okay. Then why did it bother you so much?"

"Because I don't need you or Gabe to tell me who I am."

"We...we never were." Ray said, confused.

"Really!" Allie exclaimed. "She never reads books. She's some stereotypical teen girl who spends all of her time staring at herself in the mirror and depends on everyone else to help her!" She glared at him. "You don't know _anything_ about me, Ray!"

"We don't think of you like that!" Ray exclaimed. "You're our friend! You're different from everyone else! Because you're Allie Underhill! No one can tell you what to do! You're independent, witty, kind and awesome! Why do you think...why do you think we think that about you?!"

Allie laughed incredulously. "You're kidding right? Do I seem that stupid?" She growled. "I saw the emails."

"Which emails?" Ray asked.

"The ones where you and Gabe were talking about me!"

"We weren't emailing about you!" Ray protested.

"Really!" Allie said. "How much longer are you going to lie?" She directed the dragon at Ray. "I would prove it to you, but there's no internet here, obviously. I guess for now, I just have to beat you!"

"Necrodragon of Vile Ichor, begone!"

Allie gasped as the darkness pulled her dragon into it. She glared at the voice. "How dare you, Gabe! I was in the middle of a duel!"

"With the dragon that hurt Sasha." Gabe added, glaring.

"That's what I said!" Ray shouted.

"What are you doing here, anyway?" Allie snarled. "Weren't you talking with your girlfriend?"

Gabe reddened. "I was! And she told me you have been letting off high amounts of chaotic brainwaves lately."

"What are you talking about?" Allie said, glaring.

"Wait...Allie, have you been contacting a darkness creature?" Ray asked.

"Yes, her name is Scaradorable of Gloom Hollow." she replied sarcastically.

"That isn't it." Gabe said. "Someone has been messing with your mind. Or rather: something."

"No creature, darkness or not, has been messing with my mind!" Allie screamed.

"Allie, calm down!" Ray shouted.

"No! I won't calm down!" she screamed. "The 'chaotic brainwaves' Sasha sensed are probably my thoughts about _you two_!"

Ray, Gabe and Tatsurion winced.

"We've been a little distanced lately, sure. School has us in different places all the time." Allie said. "We don't practice with each other anymore at the temple, and we aren't beating up the Choten." She snarled again. "But that is _no_ excuse to have been talking about me behind my back!"

"What are you talking about?!" Gabe asked.

"That's what I said!" Ray repeated.

Allie screamed at the top of her lungs. "I HATE BEING LIED TO! THAT'S ALL I SEEM TO GET FROM MY SO-CALLED FRIENDS LATELY!"

"Allie, calm down!" Ray and Gabe cried at the same time.

"JUST SHUT UP!" Her chest was heaving. "I DON'T NEED YOU!"

"Allie, we never-"

"BONERATTLE DRAGON! COME TO ME!"

The beast came into the fire realm, shrieking and rattling a battle cry.

"She's snapped!" Gabe exclaimed, scared.

"She's usually pretty cool about all this," Ray began. "I don't understand why she thinks-"

"Attack!"

Bonerattle Dragon roared at each of them with its heads. The sonic blast in the roar pushed Tatsurion downward and Gabe to the ground.

"Allie, stop!" Ray screamed.

"NO!" she sobbed. "I WON'T STOP! I DON'T NEED YOU! I CAN TAKE CARE OF MYSELF!" She rose off Bob, hovering in midair. Ray's eyes widened.

The Cloak of Dark Illusion fluttered over her shoulders.

"Allie...did Queen Kalima give you the cloak?" Ray asked, softly.

"No." Allie said. "Megaria snuck into my house and put it back onto me." She was sobbing at this point. "I didn't want it, but the cloak won't leave anymore. Queen Kalima keeps me close because of it."

"That's why Sasha noticed chaos from you..." Gabe whispered.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Ray asked. Sadness clouded his face.

"Because you two think I need you to solve all my problems!"

"We don't think that!" Ray shouted.

"Why don't you see the emails!" Allie exclaimed. She brought them through the veil, regardless of what the masters said. She opened her phone and showed them to her.

"We never sent those." Gabe said.

"Allie, tell us the truth." Ray said. "Who sent those emails, supposedly from us, to you?"

"Fine. If you want to know so badly, I'll just tell you!" Allie screamed. She breathed heavily, clutching her chest. "The truth...the truth is..."

**Very bad cliffhanger! Sorry! But I'm really excited to finish the next part. A lot of things come together. Anyway, chapter nine: done.**

**-Phantom**


	10. Chapter 10

**Next part!**

Chapter Ten: The Truth (Part Two)

_Last Chapter_

"No." Allie said. "Megaria snuck into my house and put it back onto me." She was sobbing at this point. "I didn't want it, but the cloak won't leave anymore. Queen Kalima keeps me close because of it."

"That's why Sasha noticed chaos from you..." Gabe whispered.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Ray asked. Sadness clouded his face.

"Because you two think I need you to solve all my problems!"

"We don't think that!" Ray shouted.

"Why don't you see the emails!" Allie exclaimed. She brought them through the veil, regardless of what the masters said. She opened her phone and showed them to her.

"We never sent those." Gabe said.

"Allie, tell us the truth." Ray said. "Who sent those emails, supposedly from us, to you?"

"Fine. If you want to know so badly, I'll just tell you!" Allie screamed. She breathed heavily, clutching her chest. "The truth...the truth is..."

_Now, let the story continue._

"Fine. If you want to know so badly, I'll just tell you!" Allie screamed. She breathed heavily, clutching her chest. "The truth...the truth is..."

Ray took a hold of her hand. Gabe and him sat next to her.

"The truth is...Megaria showed them to me. On Ray's computer." she whispered. "I know I shouldn't trust that witch after everything, but it was on _your_ computer, Ray."

"I promise, Allie. We never sent those emails." Ray said softly.

Allie tugged her hand out of his. "I want to believe you. I really do." She took a deep breath. "But in the real world, having people around you becomes a weakness. And betrayal isn't something...it isn't something I want to have to deal with." With that, she bolted. Ray and Gabe ran after her, calling her name. Eventually, they arrived at the Karate dojo which hid the temple.

"Raiden! Gabriel!" Master Chavez exclaimed. "What are you doing here? Why aren't you in the Kaiju Realm?"

Ray smirked at his office door, open just a crack. "Better question: why is Master Nadia in your office?"

She came out. "We were discussing renovations for the Karate studio." But there was no mistaking the blush lightly painted across her cheeks.

"Riiiiggghhht." Ray said sarcastically.

"Anyway, have you seen Allie?" Gabe asked. "She darted this way."

"I heard a clattering, that's why I came out. Perhaps it was her?" Master Chavez said, thinking.

"But why would she be here?" Master Nadia asked. "Why are you here?"

"She was...showing us something. And she needed the internet." Ray hastily explained. Not a lie, but not really the whole truth. "She darted away. Is she here?"

They shook their head. Ray and Gabe ran into the temple and searched for her.

"Allie!" Gabe shouted.

"Come on! Where are you?" Ray shouted.

"She just went to darkness." Master Jaha said, slipping out of the shadows.

"Allie can do that now." Ray said, cracking a grin. Her eyes widened.

"She can use the shadows?" she asked. "Already?"

"And Megaria has permanently imprinted the Cloak of Dark Illusion on her." Gabe said, sighing. "Somehow." Master Jaha's eyes widened further, if that was possible.

"We need to go save her!" Ray said.

"_You two_ will go back to the civilizations you were working at." Master Nadia corrected. "We will look for her. Like it or not, you have duties elsewhere."

"She's our friend!" Ray shouted, enraged.

"That's the problem." Master Jaha responded, a small smile playing on her lips. She shared a look with Master Nadia who nodded.

"How is that a _problem_, exactly?" Gabe asked.

"She will tell you two," Master Jaha said. "Someday. When she realizes it herself." She gazed a little harder at them. "The question is...who?"

"Uh, what?" Ray and Gabe asked, thoroughly confused.

"Go." Master Chavez said. "I don't get it either, trust me."

Master Kimora shook his head at the ladies before going to tend to his garden. Gabe nodded. Ray scowled.

"I can't." Ray said. "I can't do nothing."

"Ray, for once...I really think the masters are right." Gabe said. He looked at Ray sadly. "I want to help her too. But there is something _really_ wrong with what Allie said. She never mistrusted us...so why now? Maybe the masters can help."

Ray turned on him. "What?! How can you even say that?! We need to go after her!"

"I will." Gabe said. "But I want her to cool down first."

Ray glared at him. "Fine. You do that. In the meanwhile, we'll just let Megaria manipulate her and Queen Kalima take advantage of her."

"You shouldn't talk about a monarch like that."

"How can you say that?!" Ray shouted. "How can you be calm and say something like that, when our best friend is shadowed in darkness because she doesn't know the truth?!"

"She knows the truth, Ray." Gabe said. He sighed. "You need to let her accept it."

"Some friend you are." Ray hissed.

"That's right." Gabe said, what the Masters said dawning on him. "That's why...she felt more betrayed..."

"What...?"

Gabe glared at him. "I already knew it...I knew it, but the way Master Jaha said it...I didn't get it that way. Allie felt more betrayed...on your computer..."

"What? Gabe, what are you talking about?!" Ray asked, shaking his friend.

"It's your fault!" Gabe suddenly yelped. "How can you not...how can you not tell?"

"How is it my fault?!"

Gabe scowled. "Figure it out. She felt more betrayed because it was on your computer. Why do you think that is?"

"I don't know. And she would have felt just as betrayed if it was on your..."

"No Ray. She wouldn't." With that, Gabe summoned Gargle, put on a Gargle-made water suit, and left into water. Ray stared after him.

"Great. My only two friends hating me in one day." Ray said. He kicked the wall, really hard. Then he opened the veil and went back to fire.

Meanwhile, Allie hugged her knees and sat in her room in darkness.

"I am so stupid." she murmured, holding back tears. "How did it all happen? How could I not tell? I should've known they'd get me to tell..."

Squeaky entered the room and hugged her. Allie didn't even protest. She just sat, staring into the darkness.

"Tiny one." Queen Kalima called. Allie took a deep breath and left Squeaky's warm, gentle embrace to see the Queen. She bowed before her.

"How was your visit?" Kalima asked.

"It was fine." Allie responded. "I don't know if I will go next week."

Kalima knew a thing or two about lying, being the monarch of Darkness. "Did your friends find out that Megaria put the cloak on you?"

"Um...they..."

"It is okay." Kalima said, laughing. "I figured you would have to tell them."

"Oh." Allie replied, sheepishly.

"You are a valuable ally with the cloak imprinted upon you and your natural affinity for darkness." Kalima said. "I don't mind anything you do. But know that I trust you enough...so you can do the same."

Allie smiled up at Kalima. She was really caring when she wanted to be.

"Of course, Queen Kalima. Of course I trust you." her smile slightly shrunk. "ANd recently, I've trusted you more than my friends."

**Aw Allie, don't say that! You care about Ray and Gabe!**

**-Phantom**


	11. Chapter 11

**Here ve go!**

Chapter Eleven: ...At Some Point

Ray rode on Tatsurion's back as Tatsurion took him back to Blast Forge City.

"So...besides leaving me in the Fire realm with no idea of where you went..." Tatsurion said. "...how did everything go?"

"Bob..." Ray started.

"Yes?"

"As much as it's awesome you care, I really don't want to talk about it."

"Okay." Tatsurion landed on a mountain. He stood, arms crossed. "I won't keep going until you tell me."

Ray was taken aback. "What?"

Tatsurion nodded, as if to emphasize his point. Ray gave him a sort of _are-you-kidding-me_ look, to which Tatsurion didn't answer.

Ray sighed. "Is this necessary? What's with the stubbornness?"

"Ray, I'm worried for you." Tatsurion answered firmly. "You haven't said anything since you re-summoned me, and it isn't like you've been Mr. Nice Guy since you came here."

"Bob..." Ray warned.

"No. Listen to me. If you don't talk, you might end up hurting the people you care about."

"Like you should be-"

"I know. But I nearly got you into trouble when Moorna attacked me a while back. Right? You could have been burned to a crisp. When I finally told you everything, it put you and your friends at less of a risk. _Right?_"

"Maybe, but this isn't the best time-"

"So _when_?!" Tatsurion said, rather loudly. "You trust me, and I trust you. So if you can't talk to me, I can't trust you. And if I can't trust you, we aren't moving until you start talking."

"Alright, alright!" Ray shouted. "You win."

He told him everything that had happened (minus a few...things...at the temple) from the moment they went back to San Campion.

"Permanently...?" Tatsurion wondered out loud. "How...?"

"I don't know." Ray said, looking more defeated than ever. "I just don't know. And Gabe thinks that I'm blind or something. That I should know something, when I'm totally lost."

"About Allie?"

"Yeah."

Tatsurion snorted. "I think that might be the only complete truth I've heard from the story."

"What do you mean?"

Tatsurion sort of snorted, sort of snickered. "You'll figure it out...at some point."

Ray face-palmed. "What is with the _vagueness_?! Can't anyone just come out and say what they mean?! Is that _really_ so hard?!"

Tatsurion laughed. "You'll understand if she tells you." He tilted his head. "Or maybe...if you find it in yourself."

Before Ray could protest the vague sentence, Tatsurion took off and the two were headed for Blast Forge again.

* * *

><p>Gabe kept working on the Northern sector with Gargle. He was a little pi...annoyed at Ray, but also felt a little guilty for leaving him without explaining what he meant.<p>

"But how can he not see it?" he thought out loud. "How has it not slammed him in the face by now?"

"Is G-abriel alright?"

Gabe smiled at the creature. "Yeah...just..."

"Friend troubles? Should Gargle press troubleshoot?"

Gabe snickered. "No, it's okay." He sighed, smiled fading. "Ray will figure it out...at some point."

* * *

><p>Allie stared at Gloom Hollow, where just one cave was being mended. Squeaky worked with her family, checking on Allie every minute or two.<p>

"Are you almost done?" Allie asked. "Is the cave repaired?"

Squeaky chittered an "almost". Allie nodded.

"What is wrong with me?" Allie wondered out loud. "Why do I feel...so guilty?"

Later, Allie rode Squeaky back to Queen Kalima, finding the monarch in conversation with a darkness dragon. Sorry, not _a_ darkness dragon. Bonerattle dragon.

Allie winced and tried to creep to her room.

"Tiny one?"

Allie grimaced, turned around and walked back to the monarch.

"You got into a fight with your tiny friend?"

Allie sighed. "Sort of. He challenged me to a duel."

"Bonerattle dragon said you lost your cool."

Allie winced again. "Uh, maybe...that's when the cloak showed itself."

Kalima laughed softly. "So silly, humans. Even with emotions at bay, they can lose control when frustrated."

Allie laughed nervously. "I guess."

"I also wanted to let you know...Megaria has been sentenced as a criminal."

Allie's eyes widened against her will. "_What?_"

"She stole the cloak from me...and although she implanted it on my chosen human, it is still a crime to steal from me." the Queen explained.

Allie nodded, but her mind was in a whirl. No more Megaria appearing in the shadows, telling her to doubt herself? No more battles of chaos in her mind? Was this really happening?

"That is all. You may return to your room."

Allie opened Janet's letter again. She read it over. "They don't need me." she whispered. "I can live without them. I know I can. And Megaria is gone. So now I can do anything."

"Megaria?" a voice asked from behind her.

Allie shot up and pointed her gauntlet at..._Ray_?

"Ray?!" Allie yelped. "What the hell?! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"

"Figuring things out." Ray said. "I guess when I don't get something, I need to figure it out even if it means snooping around."

Allie snarled at him. He plucked the letter out of her hands. "What's this?"

"Give me that!" Ray put his arm out to hold her back as he read the letter. Allie struggled and pushed his arm away, but after Ray had finished reading.

"You told your dad you weren't allowed to write letters back and forth?" Ray asked, eyebrow raised.

Allie pursed her lips and looked away. "Well I don't have anything to write to him. What, am I supposed to say: 'Hey dad, I just love being on cleanup duty. The creatures are so very nice and my mana is always at work!'?! I don't want to lie to him, that I'm enjoying 'martial arts camp'!"

"She isn't lying." Ray said.

"What?"

"My mom. When she said that...she meant it. In fact...those are my exact words."

"...What?"

"'We're stronger when we work together.'" Ray quoted, sitting on the bed and staring at the ground. "'Our spirits can't be subdued when the three of us together.'" He sighed. "'So I hope she still visits us...and that we make up soon.'"

Allie said nothing, glaring at the foot of the bed.

"If Megaria was the one telling you...that you were dependent on your friends. Dependent on others. You could've shot back...'If I'm dependent on others, you're a Choten's minion.' You don't usually let things get to you like that." Ray said. Allie sucked in a breath and glared harder at the bed. If looks could kill...the bed would be _ablaze_.

"You usually come with some retort like that. You don't depend on us. And being friends with Portia and Maribel? It may make us mad, but it's your choice. Not me or Gabe's. So don't let us get in the way." Ray stood up, and Allie felt tears pooling in her eyes.

Ray opened a breach to the Fire civilization, but Allie grabbed his arm. "W-wait." Ray glanced back at her. "P-please...don't go yet. I need to..." Allie collapsed to the floor, tears streaming down her face.

"Allie?" Ray asked. He quickly closed the breach and sat next to her. "Are you okay?"

"I'm...I'm so sorry." she whimpered. "I was so unfair to you and Gabe. It's my fault I lost my best friends. I was so selfish...and I'm sorry." She threw her arms around his neck. Ray was a little shocked to see his stubborn friend collapse, but wrapped her arms around her in return.

"Don't worry. Don't cry, Allie."

"I'm such a jerk...I let an enemy make a _fool_ of me...I hurt my best friends..."

"Don't say that." Ray whispered. "It'll all be okay."

"To think..." Allie pulled away. A sad smile played on her lips as she wiped tears away. "...all of this happened in two weeks...while we still have an entire summer left of this..."

Ray smiled at her. "Sooo...ready to tell Gabe we're all friends again?"

Allie took a deep breath, let it out slowly, then nodded. She tugged a loose strand of her blonde hair behind her ear. "But, um...can we not tell him I-"

"Don't worry about it. Come on."

"Reef Prince, Glu-urrgle!" Allie summoned. The scatterbrained reef prince popped out, a little confused.

"G-abriel's friends?"

"Yeah." Allie said, a smile covering her face with the response. "We'll need watersuits so we can see Gabe." Gargle gave them the bubbles. Ray and Allie looked at each other before putting them on and banishing themselves to water.

**So this is the chapter when the "+" in the rating becomes necessary. XD Hope you like!**

**-Phantom**


	12. Chapter 12

**New chapter! **

Chapter Twelve: Corrupted Creatures

Allie's first sight in the water realm was a furious Gabe, crossing his arms.

"Any particular reason you summoned my creature away from me in the middle of a job?" he asked, the temporary light master side of him kicking in. "We're trying to repair one of the more damaged-" He stopped. "Ray?"

Ray nodded. "We're friends again." he said.

Gabe's eyes widened. "Wait...really? So all the drama is over?"

Allie nodded. "Yeah. And I'm sorry for letting a darkness lord, who, by the way, has been named a criminal, get to me."

Gabe sighed in relief. "I'm sorry for yelling at you Ray."

"Don't worry, not your fault." Ray said.

Gabe smirked. "Yeah. But I'm guessing you still don't understand what I meant."

Ray shook his head. Allie tilted her head questioningly.

"Oh...nothing." Gabe said. The three of them fist bumped. "So we're back to visiting once a week?"

"Totally." Allie said.

"Yeah!" Ray said, pumping his fist.

"Intruder alert! Intruder alert!"

"Argh! Is that us?" Allie yelped.

"No." Gabe said, shaking his head violently. "We informed King Tritonus of your visits, it must be creature related!"

"But who...?"

"Intruder is Nature/Water Corrupted creature!" Gargle wailed, tapping into the feeds.

"Corrupted?" Ray asked.

"The Choten corrupted it, even if he doesn't have control over the creature." The mention of the Choten's name built a wall of tension into the air.

"Well let's fight it." Ray said. "Tatsuri-"

"In water?" Allie said, raising an eyebrow.

Ray laughed nervously. "Good point..."

"Grybolos the Gatherer!" Allie summoned.

"Kivu, Ingenious Shaman!" Ray called.

"Aqua Strider!" Gabe summoned quickly.

"Your creature is not friend." Gargle told Ray.

"It doesn't matter now." Gabe said. "We have to hurry and find this corrupted creature before he does any damage." Gabe sighed. "We have enough to fix as it is."

The three paddled, following the alarms. Gargle maintained a telepathic link with some of the fighting Aqua Soldiers, leading the others to the corrupted creature.

"What does he mean, my creature isn't a friend?" Ray asked.

"He sided with nature when water 'attacked'." Gabe explained. "The Cyber Lords weren't very happy with him." Said creature didn't make a sound, but followed anyway.

Allie controlled her creature with no problem. "So." Ray said to her. "When did you siphon mana from Queen Kalima?"

Allie's eyes widened for a second. She winced. "Uh...at the beginning of the week. I wouldn't have had enough mana for Locomotivator."

Ray nodded. "It looks really cool."

Allie shrugged with a half smile. "Thanks."

Buildings, already in ruins, made up the landscape of the city that they once tried to protect from the Choten. Water's battle with Fire had done great damage to both sides. One of the only buildings that stood firm was the hospital, or Water's version of it. It was obvious there were plenty of wounded creatures. This could have all been stopped if the Choten had never become evil. One person's life caused more destruction than any creature. Not even the monarchs could create it on their own.

Suddenly, a crash echoed in the ruins. The three hurried further, swimming toward the creature. An Aqua Soldier's body, hit, came toward them and crashed into a building.

"It's a Bronze-Arm Renegade!" Gabe shouted.

"Wow." Ray said. "Pretty badly corrupted too. He's covered in water tech."

"Very dangerous. Aqua Soldiers have low HP." Gargle murmured.

"Grybolos, attack that creature!" Allie commanded.

A darkness sonic blast to the face. The unfazed creature roared and dove for her. She rolled her eyes and disappeared into a shadow.

"What?!" Gabe shouted.

Allie popped up behind the Renegade. Allie's creature played with the water and shadows and formed it into a unison blast of both.

"Allie can do Master Jaha's trick?!" Gabe cried, open mouthed. Ray laughed at his expression.

"What? Is it that surprising?" he asked. "She used it plenty of times against me in our duel."

"Come on guys! Keep up!" Allie called. Gabe gawked at her while Ray snickered.

"She's right. Let's go, we have a corrupted creature to catch." Ray said.

"Triple alliteration." Gabe muttered senselessly.

"Kivu, attack!" Ray shouted. Kivu blasted the Bronze-Arm Renegade, then swam up and hit him with bare hands. Ray cheered when he landed the hits.

"Keep going!" Gabe said. The Aqua Strider he controlled went in and helped attack.

The three creatures attacked simultaneously. When one went on defense, another attacked. They were really the perfect team.

"Come on!" Ray shouted. He commanded an attack, weakening and knocking out the creature.

"Cyber Lord Finbarr is coming for back up!" Gargle yelped.

Allie smirked. "What can a little blue baby do to help?"

A giant machine, about a quarter of the size of King Poseidon the Leviathan came from outside the city, weapons aimed at the corrupted creature.

"Lord Finbarr leveled up!" Gargle cheered.

Allie gawked. "No kidding!" she exclaimed.

"But why does he need such a big machine for one creature?" Ray asked. "Besides, a ton of other soldiers might get caught in the crossfire, not to mention we can totally do this on our own."

Gabe nodded. "Yeah, it does seem strange that he would bring something so large. Gargle, can you ask?"

Gargle's head glowed bright white, then faded. "Cyber Lord says he will threaten the creature, no actual fire."

Ray pursed his lips. "Yeah, but even Bob could threaten it. That machine is _huge_!"

The creature turned around. It glared at the machine, before howling. Twenty more Bronze-Arm Renegades swam into the area.

Gabe gasped and swam back. Ray and Allie both aimed again, commanding their creatures to attack.

"Tell Cyber Lord Finbarr that we need more help!" Ray said to Gargle.

"We need to lead them out of the city!" Gabe shouted. Ray nodded and Allie used Grybolos to lure them away from the buildings.

"Why is there a legion of these guys?" Allie asked.

"Because, Allison, we find strength in numbers." The three turned abruptly. They found Megaria bobbing in the water, in a Choten-design watersuit.

**How was that? Finals are coming up, so I can't write as much. Hopefully I'll get more done soon.**

**-Phantom**


	13. Chapter 13

**Dang it! This is my eighth version of this chapter! Stupid crashing safari! I'm not even joking! I _swear_!**

Chapter Thirteen: New Information (In other words, not a lot of action. XD)

"No." Allie said, hushed. Her eyes brimmed with tears. "No! You can't be here! You were sentenced a criminal by Queen Kalima!"

"For putting the cloak on you?" Gabe asked.

"She was so ungrateful." Megaria said, scowling. "It's a feat in its own to go into the Null Zone, let alone retrieve an artifact!" She smirked. "Although I would've liked getting all the artifacts..."

"You shouldn't lay your hands on even one!" Ray shouted at her.

Megaria smirked. "Allison, tell your boyfriend to watch his tongue."/

"He is _not_ my boyfriend!" Allie shouted at her. She attacked Megaria with Grybolos.

Megaria looked at Gabe. "Seriously?"

"I know, right." Gabe said, with a sigh.

"Dude, you're siding with the _enemy_." Ray said.

"I realized." Gabe said, before attacking with his Aqua Strider. Ray looked confused for a second, but joined in on the attack.

Megaria banished Aqua Strider with one blow. "You've got to be kidding me!" Gabe shouted, frustrated.

"Kivu, flank her!" Ray shouted. Kivu dodged the jabs Megaria threw and managed to get to her side. Allie attacked Megaria, so as Megaria defended herself, Kivu got her in the side.

"Ungrateful little brat." Megaria hissed at Allie. "We'll see each other soon." Megaria swam away. Gargle picked up something from the water.

"Hey! While she was running with her tail between her legs..." Gabe said, causing Ray and Allie to give him a look. "...she dropped something!" Allie fingered it.

"What is it?"

"Do you think it's Choten tech?" Ray asked the lingering question.

"I hope not." Allie said. "We've beaten him up two times already. I don't think I could take a third."

Ray nodded sadly. Allie handed the tech back to Gabe, who examined it. "It looks like...a mana storage container. Or something." Gabe said, scrunching his face to look closer.

"We can bring it to King Tritonus!" Gargle said. Gabe nodded, and the three followed Gargle, Grybolos and Kivu following.

As they approached the palace, Kivu was held back. "Ray, just banish him." Gabe hissed. Ray scowled, but banished him.

"Reef Prince." the enormous Tritonus said, towering over them. "Humans. You come to my palace without permission, bringing a traitor." Tritonus, gesturing to where Kivu had stood before Ray banished him.

"Apologies, Your Highness." Allie said. She stepped forward. "I also apologize for speaking out of turn now. But Megaria, Empress of Dread..." She paused. "...and Annoyingness had attacked your city with Bronze-Arm Renegades, destroying some of the rebuilding process my friend has been working with you on." She paused dramatically. "It's our job to make sure she does no more damage, and therefore we came to you to inform you of the problem." She handed him the device, which he picked up with a tentacle. "And we found this, and thought we should bring it to you."

King Tritonus looked surprised. Well, as surprised as he could seem to a human. "I am impressed a human speaks with such logic."

Allie chuckled. "I'm more chaos than logic. Gabe here is the logical one."

Tritonus chuckled too, but it sounded somewhat like an earthquake. "I had realized. I am quite fond of your friend." Gabe blushed and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

"I understand the danger, and thank you for bringing it to my attention." Tritonus recovered. "And your apologies are accepted." He turned to Ray. "Please do not bring traitors to my palace."

"I-" Ray stopped himself. "I...apologize for that. I didn't realize."

Tritonus nodded. "You and the humans are dismissed, Reef Prince Glu-urrgle." The four bowed their heads respectfully before leaving the palace.

"Wow Allie, I'm impressed!" Ray said, laughing. "I didn't know you had it in you!"

Allie grinned. "A week living in the Darkness realm with Queen Kalima teaches even the most stubborn students respect." She shrugged. "You kinda would prefer to not to be torn to shreds on the first day."

"I'm just surprised you know the word 'therefore'." Gabe commented. Allie punched his arm.

"Dork." she said. He rubbed his arm, wincing. Ray laughed, holding his stomach.

"A week without you guys is _torture_." he said. They all laughed.

"Talking about that..." Gabe said, face darkening. "It's probably time for you two to go. Right?" They nodded.

"Tatsurion the Unchained!" Ray summoned. Gargle put a watersuit on the annoyed Fire-Nature hybrid.

Tatsurion sighed. "I hate water." he stated simply.

"Can I come with you first?" Allie asked. Ray nodded. The two of them waved to Gabe as their view faded into fire.

Allie let go of Ray's arm and smiled at him. "Thanks." she said. She threw her arms around him quickly, then summoned Squeaky. Before Ray had a second to react, she had banished herself to Darkness. Ray tilted his head, a blush visible on his cheeks. He rubbed the back of his neck in confusion.

"I see you're starting to figure it out."

Ray jumped. "Agh! When did you get here?!"

Alakshmi laughed. "Master Chavez sent me to check if you were doing your job. I can go back now." Ray grinned sheepishly.

"Don't hurt her." she said, opening a breach back to San Campion. He was, if possible, even more confused. He was being as dense as ever. Why would he hurt his friend? What was it that he figured out?

Allie rematerialized with Squeaky, blushing crazily. "What is _wrong _with me?" she asked herself.

"You like him, he likes you. Simple as that."

Allie whirled around. Megaria stood there. "You again!" she exclaimed. Squeaky shifted into her battle form and hissed. Allie pointed her gauntlet at her. "What do you _want _anyway?!"

"Questions, questions, answers are lost." Megaria answered, unhelpfully. "The portal to answers can be found...at a cost."

Megaria faded. "A...a decoy?" Allie asked. "I need to write this down...whatever she said. I'll tell Ray and Gabe...we'll figure it out." Squeaky snuggled up to her. "Isn't that right, my little cutie?" Allie added in a baby voice. They hugged as Allie wrote the poem down, wondering what it meant.

_Questions, questions, answers are lost_

_The portal to answers can be found...at a cost..._

**Author's Note: Okay apologies are in order. i'm sorry about how long it's been taking. Also, I'm kinda depressed right now because I recently found out...*spoiler alert*...they aren't making a Kaijudo season 3. Now this may seem silly or whatever. Most people don't get how much Kaijudo means to me; it's like my escape when I feel sad, angry or hurt. And now they aren't continuing the show. So I'm depressed. And that's my stupid rant about that...oh, if you want a season 3, I found this petition for it. I signed it, if you want to it'd be nice too: /NiSbCZ**

**-Phantom**


	14. Chapter 14

**Here we go.**

Chapter Fourteen: Fun, Forgetfulness and Fear (Week 2)

*about a week later*

Allie finished a letter to her dad about how she was progressing. In "karate". She sent it back with Slyth, annoyed at his creepy way of saying goodbye.

"Goodbye Allison..._for now_." he faded away.

She rolled her eyes then got up to pet Squeaky. "They're coming here today, girl." she whispered. "It'll be nice to see them." She glanced at the paper on her desk. "Questions, questions answers are lost. The portal to answers can be found, at a cost." She repeated, like a mantra.

The first voice she heard was Gabe's. He materialized beside Squeaky, looking slightly annoyed. "You alright, Gabe?" Allie asked. He sighed and nodded.

"Progress is slow lately." he said. "Especially considering it's the water civilization. Plus, no leads on where the mana canister came from."

She nodded sympathetically. "Sorry to hear that." Ray's voice echoed, summoning Squeaky. Allie put a hand on her cheek, feeling it heat up. She wasn't sure what he would say about how she kissed his cheek last week, and now, she remembered that.

_What was I thinking?_ she asked herself.

He materialized, looking worse than Gabe. "What's wrong?" Allie asked.

He sighed. "Nothing." he tried for a smile. "So how are you guys?"

"Progress is slow, no leads on the mana container." Gabe summarized.

"We're doing really well here." Allie replied. "In fact, Queen Kalima predicted we'll be done in another week." Ray smiled half-heartedly.

"Well at least one of us is having an okay time."

"What's going on with you?" Gabe asked.

"That stupid dragon has been randomly attacking Bob." he said, annoyed.

"The one who hurt your leg?" Allie said, suddenly defensive.

He nodded. "He's making it impossible to get anything done. That stupid dragon..."

Gabe nodded sympathetically. "It'll be over soon, Infernus has to be able to do something." Ray sighed and shook his head.

"Morkaz is powerful, and has been useful to Infernus in the past." Ray explained. "He doesn't quite believe the guy is trying to hinder our progress."

Allie sighed. "Wow. That's really annoying."

Ray smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. "That's why I've been so grumpy. Sorry if I looked annoyed to you guys."

"Don't worry." Allie said, smiling. "Let's just enjoy the time the three of us have together now." Allie said "the three of us" in relief. It made things less awkward between her and Ray. She was still beating herself up in her mind for what she said was being stupid last week.

Both Ray and Gabe nodded, and they chatted a while about home, cleanup duty and such...

"Our progress has dropped to 21%," Gabe said. "because a leviathan accidentally demolished a building." Ray and Allie burst out laughing...

"We had to pick up seventeen steel plates to fix a quarter of the tower Morkaz destroyed." Ray said. "That overgrown lizard is beyond annoying." Gabe nodded.

"But maybe if he ruined something in front of Infernus..." Allie said, slyly. Ray grinned.

"Allie, you're a genius."...

"The stinkin' train is becoming unreliable." Allie said. "It took me four summons to get Locomotivator last time."

Ray leaned back against the desk, when he felt a paper. He turned around to see the note Allie had made of Megaria's words.

"Hey, what's this?" he asked.

Allie facepalmed. "I nearly forgot!" she exclaimed. "A decoy Megaria said them. I wonder what it means...I was gonna ask you guys."

"Questions, questions, answers are lost..." Ray read.

"The portal to answers can be found, at a cost?" Gabe read. Allie nodded.

"Any idea?" They both shook their heads. Allie pursed her lips. "We should ask the masters at some point."

Ray nodded. "I can't believe we have seven more weeks of this..."

Allie sighed. "Don't remind me..."

Gabe shook his head. "I actually think I need more time." he said. "I want to get to see Sasha before the summer ends, but the Water rebuilding is taking forever."

Allie laughed. "Of course. But I'm not sure Tritonus could stop you if you told him you want to leave."

"Or you could visit her." Ray suggested, a little more helpfully. Gabe sighed.

"I know, and I want to." Gabe said. "But I made a commitment. On top of that, I want to know what the mana container was for."

"And what happened to the Choten." Allie added. The air seemed to darken at the mention of the name.

"He banished himself to nature," Ray started. "and he has no connections there. Where could he be?"

Gabe sighed. "I'm not sure, but frankly, I think Megaria is the more urgent problem. She made a decoy which actually spoke with Allie."

"We don't know she made it." Allie said. "Somebody else might've."

"But who?" Gabe asked.

"I hate not having answers." Ray stated. Gabe and Allie laughed.

"We had noticed." Gabe stated also.

"That's why the 'portal to answers' is so appealing." Allie added. Ray and Gabe thought about this.

"Maybe there is actually a portal to answers," Ray said. "and that's what the Choten's after. And the decoy Megaria was sent by someone who wants us to stop him."

"That sounds..." Allie began.

"...somewhat complicated." Gabe finished. Allie shook her head.

"I was going to say too easy." She pursed her lips. "When has it ever been obvious what the Choten was after? We didn't know about his evolution serum plan until we found the tank."

"That's why we need to find the portal to answers, or whatever it's called." Ray said. "This could be the very answer to ending Megaria and the Choten's reign of terror."

Allie nodded. She smiled brightly. "So let's ask the Masters soon. I'll ask by letter. We should look for any clues to do with it."

The boys nodded. At this point, it had been several hours, meaning it was time for the boys to go."

"Alright, see you soon." Gabe said. He banished himself to water after summoning Gargle.

Ray turned to Allie. "The week has given me a lot of time to think." he said. He smiled at her. "And I realized I had been being kinda idiotic."

Allie tilted her head in confusion. Wow, she was being really forgetful today.

He turned back around and before he summoned Tatsurion, said, "I've listened to my heart more recently. And maybe I'll finally understand it soon. But for now, you should know that I haven't forgotten."

Allie remembered. She blushed tomato red again. "W-What do you mean?"

He winked at her before banishing himself. Allie touched her cheek again. It was burning. "What did he mean by that?" she asked Squeaky. Squeaky chattered coyly, but Allie pretended not to understand.

_He couldn't have meant he liked me...right?_ she thought. She absentmindedly twirled a lock of her hair. (Every person reading this: Uh, duh he likes you! Geez, you both are thick minded! XD)

"Sweetheart?"

Allie whirled to see Piper. Her mom. "Ah!" she shouted. She narrowed her eyes and pointed her gauntlet at her. "What do you want, Megaria?"

"I'm not Megaria, honey." she said. "I'm a decoy, like the Megaria one. I'm going to fade soon. But here are more lines from the poem: The lost answers are connected in a web of truth, the portal's first key is the heart of a dragon's tooth."

Allie pulled back, still suspicious. "What?"

"The lines are the first clue." she said, with a smile. She faded away.

"Squeaky, you saw her too, right?" Allie said, terrified. Squeaky nodded, and feeling Allie's nervousness enveloped her in a hug. Allie returned the hug, wanting nothing more than to fade like the decoys.

_Questions, questions, answers are lost_

_The portal to answers can be found, at a cost_

_The lost answers are connected in a web of truth_

_The first key is the heart of the dragon's tooth..._

**Hopefully this was a little sooner than usual...I should post a little more often...on top of that, I have camp for two weeks and won't be allowed to use internet. *dies* Okay, sorry. But Ill try to post as much as possible.**

**Oh, and this is the website with the petition for a Season Three: **

**www . chn . ge /NiSbCZ (Without the spaces.)**

**-Phantom**


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen: A Lot Left To Do (Beginning of Week Three)

Allie got up from her bed and met with Queen Kalima. She felt disgusting, but that's probably because she needed a shower. She thought about the others, thinking Ray is probably in the same position, but Gabe doesn't have to worry.

She sighed. "Shower time is at the end of the week." she reminded herself. "The Masters will let us do whatever we need to do."

Queen Kalima looked pretty content for a Darkness monarch. "Today you will help with my palace." she said. "It will take a week, at most."

Allie nodded. "I'm very happy I have been able to help."

"Have you considered which civilization to join after this week?" she asked. Allie thought for a second.

"I'm not sure." Allie said. "I don't know if I should join one of my friends or help another civilization."

"It would be better to join your friends." Queen Kalima said, almost demanding. She turned. "Now, you and the Scaradorable should begin to work."

Allie bowed and went back to Squeaky. "Why does she think that?" she asked her creature. Squeaky chittered.

"Oh that's right." Allie remembered. "Light and Nature are enemies of Darkness." She practically laughed at how basic it was. Queen Kalima didn't want her favored to be helping Darkness's enemies.

She got on Squeaky's back and glanced at the hole the Choten had tried to drill into the palace.

"What's our job, girl?" Allie asked. Squeaky gestured to a new cave being built nearby. A bunch of Razorkinder-looking darkness creatures helped lay a foundation.

Allie bit her lip. "Megaria's ex-toys?" she asked, quietly. Squeaky cuddled against her, feeling her enormous distaste for the puppets.

"I'm okay. Just...bad memories." she whispered to her adorable chimera.

"Don't be scared, Allison." a familiarly annoying voice echoed in the cave. Allie sighed.

"What do you want, Slyth." Allie said, obviously annoyed.

"A letter from your dad for you." Slyth explained, giving her the letter. Allie took it and quickly thanked him.

"Now go away." she commanded.

She opened the letter eagerly.

"Dear Allie,

I'm so glad they came to their senses and let us write letters to each other. I was so worried.

How is karate camp? I hope you're having a good time. Are they feeding you enough? Are you getting enough sleep? Have you gotten to see Ray or Gabe?

Write back soon, pumpkin.

Love, Dad"

Allie smiled. He was overprotective, and that truly got on her nerves, but he mattered more than anything else in her life.

Squeaky chittered and hugged Allie.

Except maybe Squeaky, Ray and Gabe.

* * *

><p>Tatsurion shot a rocket, then blasted with his shoulder cannon. Morkaz was blown away.<p>

"That. Stupid." Ray said. "Lizard."

Tatsurion sighed. "I'll say. But he won't give it a rest, now that he feels as if he has been dishonored."

Ray sighed. "It becomes clearer and clearer what your dad was like." Tatsurion snorted.

"Agreed. Even though my siblings don't see it that way."

Ray smirked. "I'll say."

They helped build one of the towers in the palace. The marketplace and other parts of the city were really coming together, but it was obvious it required many more weeks of work.

"Have you checked on your Quillspike family?" Ray asked. Tatsurion nodded.

"Yes." he replied. "Luckily, only a few tribes had any true issues. Once they cleared the flooding, most of the land was alright in the Nature civilization."

"Good, because it looks like Fire needs a lot of help." Ray commented. Tatsurion chuckled.

"I'll say, that's a huge understatement."

* * *

><p>Gabe sighed. "Remind me why those Saucer Head Sharks refuse to help on the North Western quadrant?"<p>

"They say they are overworked." Gargle responded. "How to troubleshoot?"

Gabe slapped his forehead. "This is ridiculous." He moaned. "I have no idea how to troubleshoot this, Gargle."

Gargle's head glowed. They swam and went off to help.

"How'd you do that?" Gabe asked, astonished.

"Command: Help. Now." Gargle replied. Gabe slapped his forehead again.

"Well why didn't you do that in the first place?!" he exclaimed, exasperated. Gargle frowned.

"Gargle doesn't like commanding." he responded. Gabe sighed.

"I understand. But I'd really like to get more done, so let's ask the Aqua Soldiers to help on the lower portion of the Northwestern Quadrant." Gabe said.

Gargle communicated the message and they began organizing the building of the quadrant.

* * *

><p>Allie helped hold the foundation together, along with Squeaky. She felt a sort of ripple behind her.<p>

"Hi Pumpkin." Allie gasped and turned around. Her dad stood in the entrance of the cave, smiling as if everything were normal.

"D-d-dad...?" Allie managed to stammer. "Is th-that y-you...?" She stopped. "No. It isn't. You're another decoy, and you have more lines for me."

"Bingo, honey." he replied, smiling. "Here: The second is the gem of the shining star, whose light gives hope to near and far."

He began to fade. "Wait!" Allie screamed. "I have more questions!"

"Questions, questions, answers are lost..." he said, like a reminder. He faded away completely.

Allie growled at the space he was in. Squeaky squeaked. Allie hugged her. "The decoys are really here, right?" Squeaky nodded, the Evil Toys who saw him nodded as well.

"I need to show these to Ray and Gabe." Allie whispered. "I wonder if they're getting them too?" She rode on Squeaky's back to her room, where she wrote all the lines down again.

_Questions, questions, answers are lost_

_The portal to answers can be found, at a cost_

_The lost answers are connected in a web of truth_

_The first key is the heart of the dragon's tooth_

_The second is the gem of the shining star_

_Whose light gives hope to near and far..._

**So this is probably shorter than usual, sorry. I wanted to get one in before I disappear for two weeks. *sheepish look* Really sorry. I'll try to see about writing more on paper, then uploading them when I get back. Oh and a special:**

**Author's Note: I'm a suckish person, I haven't responded to a lot of you. But to those who have read this, those who have reviewed, thank you so much. I love writing here so much, and am so happy you enjoy my story. (Which, BTW, isn't that good anyway.) Yeah, this is an Author's Note about how thankful I am for you guys. Thanks!**

**-Phantom**


	16. Chapter 16

**I'm back, and sorry about what a suckish updater I am. **

Chapter Sixteen: Closer Than Ever (End of Week 3)

Allie activated her gauntlet and summoned Gargle. He popped out of the breach and provided her with a watersuit.

"Thanks," she said. She put the paper in her pocket and quickly banished herself to water.

* * *

><p>Ray yawned as he jumped off of Tatsurion, after doing a sweep of the city. "See you soon." Ray told him. Tatsurion grinned at him before flying off again.<p>

Ray summoned Gargle, put on the watersuit and banished himself to Water.

* * *

><p>Gabe planned out the next step in rebuilding the northwestern quadrant while Allie and Ray, in turn, materialized in his room.<p>

He waved at them, said a quick "hello", then kept working.

"I feel so loved," Allie joked. "How's it going?"

He sighed. "Alright. It could be better."

Ray slapped him on the back. "Don't worry man, it _will_ get better."

Gabe sighed again. "Whatever you say. What about you?"

"Blast Forge's coming up really well. It's even starting to look like how it looked before the war." Ray said. "But Morkaz is still being a pain."

"I wanted to show you both this." Allie took out the paper with the lines, which miraculously stayed intact with the water pressure. Mystical rules apply, I suppose.

"The decoy Megaria came back?" Gabe asked.

Allie shook her head. "My dad and mom. Decoys."

"Dragon's tooth...?" Ray murmured.

"But what kind of dragon? There are dragons in every civilization!" Gabe exclaimed.

"I don't think it's a celestial dragon." Ray said. "I'm not sure if it's true, but I think there's one key per civilization."

"And a star definitely sounds light-related." Allie concluded.

"I'll ask Sasha later." Gabe said. They high-fived and laughed.

"Have any decoys come to you guys?" Allie asked suddenly. They shook their heads.

"Maybe they're being made in Darkness." Ray suggested.

"I have a feeling it's a whole hell of a lot more complicated than that." Allie scowled.

Ray put his hand on her shoulder. "We'll figure it out." he smiled at her. She looked at him and smiled back. Gabe's eyes widened, looking at his phone, and he ducked out of the room.

Ray and Allie turned to see him dash out, then back at each other with a grin.

"Sasha." they said, simultaneously. They laughed together, teasing Gabe all the while.

Gabe tapped the glowing light symbol and smiled at the holo-figure. "Hi Sasha." he greeted.

"Hello Gabriel. How is everything going, as humans say?"

"The Water cleanup is fine. It could be better."

Sasha grinned. "I had meant about your friends."

Gabe laughed. "Oh! Things are very good. We've made up and are having fun together again."

Sasha smiled. "I'm glad to hear that."

"Oh...Sasha, do you know anything about a shining star that gives hope? It's supposed so be some sort of key..."

Sasha looked thoughtful. "The only object I think of is the Heart of Light. But there are rumors in the Light civilization about a special star, locked away somewhere in the keep."

"Thanks." Gabe said, nodding.

"I will speak to you later, Gabriel."

"See you, Sasha." The call ended and Gabe ran back to the room. Ray and Allie looked up abruptly as he opened the door.

"She said there are rumors about a special star, locked away." Gabe said. "Or the Heart of Light."

"What about the dragon's tooth?" Allie asked.

Ray thought for a second. "It probably would belong to a more powerful dragon. Maybe a champion of some sort." He winced. "Maybe like Napalmeon the Conquering."

"We can eliminate possibilities when we get more lines." Gabe added.

"We need to find out who's making the decoys." Allie said, pursing her lips. Anyone could tell it was bothering her the most. The decoy creator was taking people closest to her, whether in hatred or love, and messing with her feelings. Allison Underhill is not a weak girl, and won't stand being toyed with.

"It's all pretty frustrating, huh?" Ray said with a weak smile.

"We'll figure it out. The masters have our back." Gabe said, confidently. Ray and Allie sighed.

"How can you be so confident?" Allie asked. "How can you not, even for a second, believe we aren't going about this the right way?"

Ray looked at her. "Wow. This is going to sound so stupid...you sound so mature. Not that you weren't...but I think something changed ever since a few months ago."

Allie shrugged. "It's probably Kaijudo, actually. My life has so much more meaning now, I fight to help protect the Earth. I've fought a real villain with you guys, and it's given me perspective."

Gabe nodded. "I agree."

"You were always mature, Gabe," Allie said, giving him a look.

Ray laughed. Then he took a deep breath. "Yeah...but sometimes I think it's taking a toll on us too."

Allie smiled. "No. Life is, for sure, but Kaijudo is something bringing us together. All of us who practice this art are a part of this community. Everyone who's willing to put everything on the line, everyone who knows about it. We're a family."

"That's an amazing way to see it." Ray said.

"I couldn't agree more." Gabe said. "I've been thinking school has been separating us, but...maybe that's why we're so close."

"You lost me." Allie said.

"No matter how far we're dragged, we have each other's backs. No matter what we end up believing, we care about each other." Ray said. "Maybe we're closer than ever now."

They group-hugged. "Closer than ever." they said together.

"And dragged apart by time." Allie said, wincing. "How much longer do we have?"

"An hour, I think." Gabe said. So they chatted for a while longer, the deep talk still echoing in their hearts.

Allie went with Ray first again, seeing the Fire civilization. Ray smiled at the sight. Allie laughed.

"Someone likes fire a bit too much." she joked.

He chuckled. Allie summoned Squeaky, and just as she was banishing herself, Ray leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.

Let's just say Allie rematerialized with a deep red blush.

And Ray was just as red at the same time.

* * *

><p>Gabe glanced up as Alakshmi materialized in the room. "Is everything going well?" she asked.<p>

He nodded. She nodded in response before opening a veil breach back to Earth.

**How was that? Is my writing getting any better? I hope that satisfied those who wanted more Rayllie/Rallie. No new lines this chapter! Thank you everyone who loved, followed or reviewed!**

**-Phantom**


	17. Chapter 17

**This may be quicker than usual, but don't get used to it! XD**

Chapter Seventeen: Progress and Loss (Week 4)

The caves were completed. Allie was done.

She couldn't believe it, truthfully. Three weeks of hard work, and she had fulfilled her job in Darkness. And although she would always feel more comfortable in Darkness, partially considering the Cloak imprinted onto her, it was time to switch civilizations.

The question was: which one?

She could go with the obvious pick, joining Ray. He made her feel safe. But then there was the whole issue of her feelings that she kept denying, which was getting harder with the way he was acting...

Confusing.

She could join Gabe, who really needed the help. That would be probably the most logical choice. Heh. Logical, like Gabe.

Or she could go to Nature or Light, with neither of them, and be in hostile territory, considering the Cloak imprinted onto her.

Not the smartest idea.

So basically, it was between Fire and Water. Her decision for now was to stay until the end of the week, then discuss it with Ray and Gabe then.

* * *

><p>Gabe watched the Northwestern quadrant progress. He was fairly happy, he had finished the Northeastern and the Northwestern was at about 84%. Hopefully, he would be well into the Southeastern by the end of the week.<p>

"How is everything going?" a voice said, one he recognized.

"Alright, Master Nadia." he said, turning to face her.

"I am glad to hear it. Fire and Water are the only civilizations in true need now, with the exception of some Nature tribes and a few parts of the Light citadel."

"So Darkness is complete?"

"Yes."

"Are you assigning a civilization to her, or is she choosing?"

"She will discuss the choice with you two at the end of the week."

Gabe nodded.

"I will see you later, Gabriel." she said, jumping into a breach. Gabe turned back to a Water tablet.

"Woah, 93%?" he said aloud. He looked through the window and saw the creatures working together.

He grinned. "Maybe we will get it done quickly!" he said. Forgetting that the Southwestern was the most damaged quadrant.

* * *

><p>Ray glanced down to see the palace. "At least the palace is done." he told his partner.<p>

Tatsurion snorted. "Never done. Almost, though. The marketplace is done, the battleground is done...I believe what we have besides the palace are the outposts."

Ray nodded. "Okay."

As they landed near the palace, they heard explosions. Tatsurion growled. "If that was Morkaz, I will..."

"MORKAZ!" Infernus' voice thundered, shaking the palace and nearly knocking over a support that was holding up a tower.

Ray jumped back on Tatsurion's back. "Come on, let's see what's going on."

They flew up to see the ginormous monarch addressing the dragon. "MORKAZ! You shot a missile AT MY PALACE!"

"I apologize, Emperor Infernus." he said, less nervous than Ray had hoped. "My blasters seem a bit defective."

"Defective enough to be aiming at Bob?" Ray asked. Both enormous dragons turned to him.

Infernus then glared at Morkaz. "Is this true? Were you aiming for Tatsurion?"

"Of course not." he replied. He turned to them with hatred in his eyes. "I would never think of hurting a brother."

Infernus growled. "In any case, you will have to fix the broken turret. My eyes are turned to you, Morkaz. Do NOT break my trust!" he flew back inside, the wind knocking both of them to the ground. Ray groaned.

"So close." he whispered. Tatsurion snorted.

"Agreed." They both walked to Ray's makeshift room. Ray lied down on the bed and stared at the ceiling.

A breach opened in the veil, and Master Chavez jumped into the room. Ray got up and bowed to him.

"Master Chavez." Ray greeted.

"It's good to see you, Raiden. I am glad your leg has healed."

Ray sighed. "Yeah. That stupid dragon hasn't given up though..."

"He is attracting attention, though." Tatsurion told Master Chavez. "He may get in trouble."

"You are getting really good at opening veil breaches to the right place." Ray commented.

Master Chavez grinned. "The eyepiece helps a lot, and meditation."

"And practice?"

"That too."

Ray laughed. "Is everything going well?"

"That's what I am supposed to ask you."

"Then everything is going nicely. We have outposts and the palace left."

"At the end of the week, Allison will discuss with you and Gabriel which civilization to join. Darkness is complete."

Ray looked surprised. "Oh, that was quick."

"Yes. I'm guessing she will join one of you two."

Ray nodded. "Okay."

"I'll see you soon, Raiden." Master Chavez disappeared into another breach. Ray saw a glimpse of San Campion, and smiled.

"Never thought I'd miss home so much..." he murmured. As he said that, his parents hopped through.

"It must be visiting day." Ray joked as he hugged them.

"How is everything?" Janet asked him.

"It's great, Mom." Ray said. "What about you?"

"Things are good." Ken replied. "Your grandpa says hi." Ray smiled brighter.

"I've really been missing home," he said. "I'm glad there are only five weeks left." Both his parents nodded in agreement.

They chatted for a while longer before it was getting late and they had to go.

"I miss you already." Janet complained. Ray laughed.

"Love you." he told them. They waved as they disappeared through the veil. Ray stared after them a while longer.

"You're very lucky to have parents like that." Tatsurion told him, gently. Ray smiled and nodded.

"I know."

"Infernus has assigned us to an outpost for tomorrow."

Ray sighed. "Alright. Let's just sleep for now." Tatsurion nodded. The duo fell asleep soon after.

* * *

><p>Allie was about to get into her bed when she heard someone walking toward her. She prepared for another decoy.<p>

"Hey Allie." a snooty teenage voice echoed in her room. Allie snarled. To see Portia and Maribel? These decoys had no limits.

"Hi. Just tell me the lines." she scowled.

The two decoy girls laughed. "Then let's get right to the point." decoy-Portia said, looking at decoy-Maribel.

"The third is a sparkling crystal jewel..." Maribel said.

"...which is made of water, warm and cool." Portia finished. Allie nodded.

"Bye." she said, as they faded away.

"The portal to answers can be found _at a cost_!" they reminded her.

"What cost?!" Allie cried after them. She glared at the spot before writing the lines down and getting into bed.

A lone tear rolled down her cheek before the darkness of sleep overtook her.

_Questions, questions, answers are lost_

_The portal to answers can be found at a cost_

_The lost answers are connected in a web of truth_

_The first key is the heart of the dragon's tooth_

_The second is the gem of the shining star_

_Whose light gives hope to near and far_

_The third is a sparkling crystal jewel_

_Which is made of water, warm and cool..._

**Okay, I've had a little extra time, but please don't expect me to update so often. Hope you liked, and please review, no matter how terrible you think this story is.**

**-Phantom**


	18. Chapter 18

**New chapter!**

Chapter Eighteen: Awkwardness Interrupted (End of Week 4)

Ray waited in his room, Tatsurion standing next to him. He first heard Allie's voice, and touched his cheek absentmindedly.

Everybody hopes he is finally realizing they have feelings for each other and isn't still thickminded about the whole thing.

As she materialized, she looked content. "Hi Ray." she said.

"Hey," he responded, smiling at her. Allie returns the smile, but turns away quickly, trying to hide the rosy blush creeping up her cheeks

Gabe materialized soon after, interrupting the awkwardness. Allie nearly sighed in relief and fought the blush.

"Hey guys." he said, with a smile.

"Hey Gabe." Allie and Ray chorused.

"I'll be back later, after checking out the outpost we're starting tomorrow." Tatsurion told Ray. He walked out and the three heard the beating of his wings.

"So how's everything here?" Gabe asked Ray.

"Good, just the palace and the outposts left." Ray answered, shrugging. Gabe nodded. "What about you?"

"Starting the Southeastern quadrant tomorrow," Gabe said happily. "If we progress as well as we are now, we may be done in three weeks."

"Good, 'cause we only have five weeks left." Allie reminded him.

"Allie..." Gabe reminded her.

"Right," she said, rubbing the back of her neck. "So, I'm done. With the Darkness rebuilding. I don't know which civilization to join so..."

"I'm guessing you'll join one of us?" Ray fake-guessed. Allie laughed.

"Something like that." she replied. "I wanted to know your thoughts." Ray shrugged slightly but smiled.

"Well, Water has more damage, but in Fire you move around quite a bit more." Gabe started, making a neutral argument.

"And King Tritonus has noticed your logic lately." Ray added.

"But you know more creatures in fire." Gabe continued.

Allie nodded. "They're good arguments for both sides." She sighed. "I'm still not sure what to do."

They made a list of pros for both sides. They also named the enemies she had made in both civilizations.

"Vorg." Gabe said, chuckling.

"Half the Aqua Soldiers." Ray said, also laughing.

Allie laughed. "Good old days, making enemies of every creature in sight." They laughed together, reminiscing about the times they had been fighting the Choten.

"I'm glad he's gone." Allie said.

"But is he gone for good?" Ray added.

"Let's not talk about that." Gabe said, wincing. "The guy really freaked me out."

That was a unanimous decision.

"So have you made up your mind?" Ray asked.

Allie nodded. "I'm going to switch between civilizations every week, so I get experiences from both."

They nodded. "Good compromise." Gabe said.

"Sounds fun." Ray said. "Question: which first?"

Allie shrugged. "I don't know, we could flip a coin or something." They laughed at how normal that sounded, in such an abnormal situation. Gabe found a penny in his pocket.

"Heads for Fire, tails for Water." Ray said. Gabe flipped it up, and it spun. Allie caught it and showed the others.

"Heads." they chorused, two of the three slightly blushing.

(*narrator clears throat* Ahem. I wonder why. XD)

With that decided, they could go on to talk about what they missed most from San Campion.

"My grandpa, mom and dad." Ray started. "The pier and bike riding."

"My dad and my tablet." Allie said, chuckling. "My bedroom, my normal clothes." she added, referring to her Darkness getup.

"My parents, my computer..." Gabe thought. "School-" Allie and Ray's incredulous looks cut him off. "What?"

"School? Are you serious?" Allie and Ray said at the same time. They three of them burst into laughter. Unbeknownst to them, a Nature-Fire hybrid watched them from outside, smiling at the friends that couldn't be broken no matter what.

"I need to head back." Gabe said, after a while. Ray and Allie nodded. "Can't wait to see you guys at the end of the week." He summoned Gargle, put on the watersuit, and banished himself to Water.

Ray and Allie turned to each other. They blushed simultaneously.

"So..." Ray said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Come on, I'll take you two to the outpost." Tatsurion said, interrupting the awkwardness. They nodded and walked next to him. Tatsurion whispered into Ray's ear.

"You're lucky Gabe interrupted the awkward moment." he whispered. "You need to make her your mate before it gets too awkward to talk to each other."

Ray's entire face turned crimson. "W-what do y-you m-mean by that?" he stammered loudly. Allie turned to him and tilted her head.

"What happened?" she asked, furrowing her eyebrows. Ray, if possible, became redder.

"N-nothing! He said nothing at all!" he yelped, shaking his head. Allie remained confused as Tatsurion snickered behind them.

Their awkward moments are always fun to exploit.

* * *

><p>Gabe worked on the Southeastern quadrant with Gargle. The planning was going fine, but the creatures were a bit slow.<p>

"But if the fifth group of Saucerhead Sharks is on that building, wouldn't the third be free?" he asked the Cyber Prince.

Gargle nodded. "Yes. But that group would work better on other building."

Gabe sighed. "Alright. Then keep a group of Aqua Soldiers on that building." he said, pointing to the screen. Gargle nodded and relayed the message.

* * *

><p>After coming back, Allie prepared a room for herself. As she looked at "her job well done", she sighed slightly. She heard quiet footsteps and turned to see Lucy.<p>

"Hey Luce!" Allie said, slightly confused. "What're you doing here?"

"I have lines for ya." she said. Allie sighed.

"Another decoy?" The decoy nodded.

"Here: The fourth is a stone of spiritualunion, the tribal god's special fusion."

Allie nodded. "See you." she said, as the decoy faded away. Lucy the decoy grinned at her before becoming nothingness.

"Allie?" She heard Ray's voice from behind her. Allie turned and sighed.

"Two more lines." Allie said simply. She hung her head. "I wish I knew what was going on." Ray came over and hugged her.

"It's okay. You're okay." he whispered. She refused to let herself cry in frustration. Hey were no closer to figuring out what was going on, and Allie was feeling the pressure of the decoys in her heart.

_Questions, questions, answers are lost_

_The portal to answers can be found at a cost_

_The lost answers are connected in a web of truth_

_The first key is the heart of the dragon's tooth_

_The second is the gem of the shining star_

_Whose light gives hope to near and far_

_The third is a sparkling crystal jewel_

_Which is made of water, warm and cool_

_The fourth is a stone of spiritual union_

_The tribal god's special fusion..._

**So I hope this chapter was alright. I know I'm a suckish author...but I have to admit, this is a lot of fun to write.**

**-Phantom**


	19. Chapter 19

**I hope this chapter is longer than usual...I've been trying to write more, I really have.**

Chapter Nineteen: Plans and Information

Gabe sighed. His optimism level decreased with the amount of work they had gotten done in the last few days.

With 7% of the Southeastern quadrant done, he didn't feel very accomplished.

The poor Water creatures were never entirely sure of what they were doing, and sometimes they would have to redo half the work they had already done. It was hindering the progress significantly.

"Gargle...how do we fix this?" Gabe sighed.

Gargle shook his head. "Gargle can't troubleshoot. Not enough data." Gabe sighed again, hanging head. The hologram-projector whirred above him, showing the entire city.

"Let's hope you get your data soon, 'cause otherwise, we'll never finish."

* * *

><p>As they scoped the outpost, Ray and Allie made notes of what to fix.<p>

"The main door looks like it's in shambles." Ray said.

"The top doesn't look supported." Allie added.

"The factory needs more support." Ray also added.

"The bottom needs to be molded." Allie finished. Tatsurion chuckled.

"Alright, let's get down there." he said. He dove down and Ray showed him what to do. Tatsurion was very efficient, fixing the door quickly. The Fire creatures were estonished, and grudgingly respected him.

Allie summoned, "Galzak of Shadow Pass!" and began to support the top. He put up steel plates by her command.

A creature spoke to them. "We would enjoy to thank you for hard working." he said, a very rusty attempt at English.

"We are honored to help." Ray spoke, Tatsurion nodding.

In three hours or so, they had finished repairing the outpost. Ray high-fived Allie, laughing.

"That was fun!" he said.

She laughed too. "Yeah! So what are we doing now?"

"Returning." Tatsurion said, smiling from the enthusiasm they had. "Infernus will tell us there."

"Don't tell him you're going to Water, say Nature." Ray whispered in her ear. Allie winced.

"Good point."

They climbed onto Tatsurion's back. Allie wrapped her arms around Ray. Before he could even blush, Tatsurion pushed off the ground and flew to Blast Forge City's enormous palace.

They landed, Ray and Allie jumping off Tatsurion's back. They walked into the throne room and awaited orders.

"I'm impressed, puny ones." Infernus said. "You are quite powerful for humans."

"Thank you, your majesty." they said at the same time. The smiled at each other before turning to Infernus.

"Why did you come here after Darkness?" Infernus questioned Allie.

"I really wanted to help." she said, shrugging. "Plus, Ray is here, so it's nice to be with my friend."

Infernus raised a fiery eyebrow. "Friend? I thought he was your mate..." Both flushed immediately and tried to say no.

"N-no it isn't like that!" Allie stammered.

"We're just close friends!" Ray added.

Tatsurion and Infernus laughed loudly. The two flushed and stared at the ground while the dragons guffawed. (That's such a weird word. I used to think it was guwaffed.)

"S-so what's our next assignment?" Allie asked, still red.

"The outpost on the border of Water." Infernus said. "The guards will direct you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Ray asked.

"Yes, you have the rest of the day off." Infernus said, smiling his rather creepy smile of reassurance.

"Thank you your majesty!" Ray and Allie said at the same time. This time they didn't look at each other, they just turned red. Tatsurion chuckled and thanked him too.

They walked back to their rooms, splitting up as Allie's was a little father down than Ray's.

Ray lied on his bed and stared at the ceiling, still red.

Allie sat at her new desk and wrote her dad a letter, a giant smile on her face.

"Dear Dad,

I miss you a lot. I think about you all the time and wish I could see you. How is everything at home? Your job?

I got moved into another group. Ray's in it, but the set-up is really iffy and I think I may end up switching between Ray and Gabe's group. I know I'm going to have a lot of fun, like I already have. A lot has happened, but we've gotten through it.

I hope everything's alright with you. Write me soon!

Love,

Allie"

Allie proofread it, before summoning Slyth to take it to her dad. "Nice change of scenery." the specter joked, knowingly getting on her nerves. Allie sighed.

"Just go." she said, banishing him. "That had better make it to my dad!" She shouted, just as he faded out of view. She walked out toward Ray's room, then knocked on the door. He opened it, and grinned at her.

They sat on his bed, talking about how to finish the outposts. "Well today's seemed easy enough." Allie commented. "It got fixed pretty quickly."

Ray shrugged. "Yeah that's true. And Galzak was really efficient."

"I actually think you may be done in two or three weeks." Allie added. Ray nodded.

"That sounds good. Then I can help in Nature for a while."

Allie winced. "I can't help you there. With the Cloak embedded on me and all..." Ray nodded again.

"I understand. Then you can stick with Gabe." Ray replied. Allie nodded this time.

"And the poem," Ray suddenly added. "Sometime during this week, I can distract Infernus by helping out. You can go around and look for 'the heart of the dragon's tooth', or maybe something else if more decoys give you lines."

"Alone?" Allie asked, suddenly nervous. Ray smiled gently at her.

"It's okay if you don't want to. In fact, we can go for a bit today." Ray reassured her. Allie nodded and smiled. They walked out, finding Tatsurion.

"Hey Bob, we wanted to look for a 'heart of a dragon's tooth' or something." Ray told his half-dragon partner. Tatsurion tilted his head curiously but didn't question him.

They took off, flying to many parts of the city and outposts, questioning creatures about the key and riddle. They had come up with nothing, but did agree to ask Infernus the next time they spoke to him.

As they flew back, they suddenly were attacked by a barrage of missiles. Ray and Allie put up their mana shields, but were losing mana due to the attack.

"Morkaz." Tatsurion growled. The dragon dove towards them, and Tatsurion tried to fly away as quickly as possible.

"He's leading us away from the city!" Allie shouted at them.

"We don't have much choice!" Tatsurion answered, beating his large wings. He turned to shoot missiles at the dragon who was approaching fast. He turned back to flying away.

Morkaz cackled and shot more missiles. Tatsurion felt the blow, suddenly plummeting.

"Ray...Allie...you have to...jump!" he managed to choke out.

"Bob!" Ray cried, terrified.

"I'll be fine...just jump!"

Ray grabbed Allie by the waist and jumped. Allie held onto Ray's neck, beyond terrified. He put up his mana shield a few seconds before hitting the ground, Allie helping. The bounced off and landed on the ground.

Ray had twisted his ankle and Allie had landed on her arm. Both groaned as they attempted to sit up.

"Bob!" Ray cried. He looked over the edge of the rocks to see his partner in lava, groaning.

Ray sighed, partially in terror, partially in relief. He knew he would heal, and his mana would be replenished, and he also got a bath out of it. But Morkaz would still come for them.

He turned to Allie. "Bob needs time to heal," he said. "so we should walk around for a bit." She nodded and stood up, rubbing her sore arm. She helped him up with her good arm.

After a little hobbling on his ankle, Ray managed to walk properly, the pain slowly going away. "Hold on." Allie said. "Sit for a sec." He did as he was told.

Allie closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then starting healing his leg. Ray was shocked. He knew she had a knack for spells...but a human healing spell?!

When she was done, she sighed. "Ugh, I used to much mana." she complained. Ray hugged her.

"I'm sorry. You didn't have to do that." he apologized. She shook her head.

"Don't be silly, I chose to do it." she said. "Besides, I don't want you to walk around and possibly make it worse."

Ray released her and stood up, helping her up. They walked to a cave near them and peeked in. They saw something glowing, and walked in.

Ray suddenly stopped. _"Raiden."_

"Is that...the mystic?" he whispered out loud. Allie tilted her head.

"I don't hear him." she whispered to him.

_"Raiden, come. I'm just a little further inside."_ Ray took Allie's hand and walked towards the source of the voice. They saw the mystic, flames flickering in his form.

"Welcome to the cave of the Heart." he said, simply. "Before you find it, I have some of the answers you desire.

Firstly, the decoys come to you, Allison, because they harness the signature of the Cloak. They then assume the forms of the people in your thoughts, which are present in that signature.

Secondly, the Heart of the Dragon's tooth is in this cave, and is the first of the keys. The others are in the other civilizations.

Lastly, the Choten is alive. Sick, near to death, and looking for a cure alongside a new partner Nature creature. His plans, I can't say."

Allie sighed in relief, then tensed at the bit about the Choten. Ray remained worried. "What do we do?" he asked.

"It isn't your time to know. Now is the time you find the Heart." the mystic responded. "When my form dissipates and returns to my cave, a door will open. It will take you to a wall with a question, and if you figure out the answer, you will be able to retrieve the Heart." He faded away slowly. "Good luck."

Ray and Allie, still hand-in-hand, entered the doorway that opened behind where the mystic had stood. They came in front of a wall, decorated with red flames. They read the question.

"Which is the correct Fire symbol..." Ray read aloud. They looked at the three buttons, rack with the logo. Two were wrong.

"The one on the right is wrong." Allie pointed out. "The symbol has a gear looking thing and that has semicircles." Ray nodded.

"This is the correct one." Ray said, pointing to the middle one. "The other one is flipped around." Allie nodded, surprised. She was impressed he could figure that out so easily.

Ray pressed the button, and the cave started to shake. The button came out of the wall, revealing a small gem that resembled a heart. Ray gingerly picked it up and hid it in his pocket.

Allie cheered, then realized something. "Uh, Ray? You can let go of my hand now..." He blushed and did so.

Suddenly, Ray felt more powerful. As if a fiery inferno was burning inside. Allie noticed this.

"Your mana has increased a lot." she said. She touched the pocket with the stone, and the wave of power gently simmered down.

"That's...woah." he said. Allie nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. Where should we put it?"

"When we go to San Campion in two days, we should give it to Master Chavez." Ray said immediately.

"Good idea." They exited the cave, and found Tatsurion out of the lava, but still looking weak. Ray and Allie both gave him mana, and he jolted up.

"That's much better." he said. "I feel...so much more powerful!" Ray and Allie nodded.

"The Heart of the Dragon's tooth." Allie said simply. They flew on Tatsurion's back, back to the palace.

* * *

><p>Gabe woke up. "Ah! I fell asleep!" he said, jolting up. Gargle turned to him.<p>

"LOL, G-abriel." he replied. "Commands?"

Gabe inspected the projection. "Oh wow, we're up to 23%? Nice job Gargle!"

"Thank you."

"Oh, but move Group Seven to the area where Group Eight is. They look like they're not doing anything."

"Understood." Gargle responded, head lighting up.

* * *

><p>Tatsurion landed, Ray and Allie coming off his back. Morkaz's eyes widened.<p>

"How did you come back? You look unscathed!" he said, hissing.

"Why?" Infernus's voice said, over their heads. "Did something happen?"

"Morkaz attacked us." Ray said. "Bob plummeted and was also injured. Me and Allie had to jump, by his command."

"Morkaz!" Infernus bellowed. "You attacked your brother, and his partner...my favored human?!" The ground shook. Morkaz tensed up.

"No! They are lying!"

"Why would we lie? Allie's arm is hurt as proof!" Allie nodded wincing as she attempted to move it.

"But why would Tatsurion be fine?!"

"Because we gave him mana!"

Infernus shouted, "Enough!" He turned to Tatsurion, Ray and Allie. "You three may return to your places." He turned to Morkaz. "You and I are going to chat."

They split up, Morkaz giving them a dirty look. Ray and Allie went to Allie's room.

"Hey guys." Gabe said, suddenly entering.

"Gabe! What are you doing here?" Ray asked.

"I have lines for you." he replied.

"A decoy..." Allie muttered under her breath.

"The fifth and last is compact darkness, whose power is terrifying and heartless." he said.

Ray and Allie nodded.

"See you guys! " The decoy faded.

"I can see how that's been unnerving." Ray said to Allie as she wrote the lines down. She nodded.

"It scares me." she told him, turning back. He hugged her.

"Don't be scared." he whispered.

She hugged him back, burying her face into his shoulder. "I'm trying." They embraced for a while, as a tear rolled down Allie's face.

A tear of terror.

_Questions, questions, answers are lost_

_The portal to answers can be found, at a cost_

_The lost answers are connected in a web of truth_

_The first key is the heart of the dragon's tooth_

_The second is the gem of the shining star_

_Whose light gives hope to near and far_

_The third is a sparkling crystal jewel_

_Which is made of water, warm and cool_

_The fourth is a stone of spiritual union_

_The tribal god's special fusion_

_The fifth and last is compact darkness_

_Whose power is terrifying and heartless..._

**So how was that? Good? Bad? Please review! I love to hear your opinions and thoughts.**


	20. Chapter 20

**Heh...heh...okay, read the chapter first! **

Chapter Twenty: Fact and Emotion (During and End of Week 5)

Ray and Allie popped out of the veil breach into the temple. They split up and did everything they had to, like showering and brushing their teeth and such. They may be able to in the Creature realm, but it just wasn't the same.

After freshening up, they talked to Master Chavez. "Master Chavez!" Ray called. "We need to show you something!" Said man turned around.

"Yes, Raiden?"

Ray took out the small, heart-shaped stone and gave it to him. Master Chavez's eyes widened as his mana felt doubled. Maybe tripled!

"What is this?" he asked, astonished.

"The heart of the dragon's tooth." Allie said simply.

"I've never heard of it."

"We figured. Can you keep it safe for us?"

"I will keep it safe with me at all times." he said. "Count on me."

Ray and Allie bowed to him before going back to Fire.

* * *

><p>Gabe washed up, noticing bags under his eyes. <em>Woah. Have I not been sleeping properly?<em>

He bowed to the Masters before returning to Water.

He glanced at the projection. 74%.

He hadn't even begun on the Southwestern quadrant, and he was already becoming tired.

It would be nice to see Allie and Ray the next day.

* * *

><p>Ray summoned Gargle, who gave both Ray and Allie watersuits. They banished themselves to Water.<p>

Gabe greeted them. "Nice to see you guys."

"Hey Gabe." Ray said. "How's Water coming along?"

"87% into the Southeastern quadrant." he said. "Hopefully we should be done tomorrow, but then we start the hardest quadrant."

Allie winced. "Ooh. Sorry to hear that."

"You're almost done." Ray said, optimistically. Gabe smiled half-heartedly.

"Maybe."

"Stay optimistic, 'cause I'm joining you." Allie joked. The three of them laughed together.

"What about Fire?" Gabe asked, turning back to the holo-projector.

"Just outposts and the palace..." Allie started.

"And the Heart of the Dragon's tooth." Ray added, hoping Gabe would catch what he meant.

"Oh so-" Gabe stopped. "Wait, what?"

"We found it. Believe it or not, it was because Morkaz attacked Bob. When he fell, we explored a cave nearby. The Heart of the Dragon's tooth was hidden in the passage." Ray explained.

"It's also why my arm is bandaged and Ray's ankle is too." Allie said, rubbing her arm.

"Did Infernus do anything about it?" Gabe asked, worry lining his expression. Ray and Allie nodded.

"We haven't seen him since Infernus told him they were going to have a 'chat'." Ray said, thinking.

"What...what does it do?" Gabe asked.

"It made me feel immensely more powerful." Ray said, remembering the feeling of the stone touching his skin. "Like flames were roaring through me."

"It's like...battle mana or something." Allie said.

"So you can search for the stone of Water while you're here." Gabe said, realizing their plan.

"Yup." Allie said. "Cause I'm pretty sure I won't be helpful in rebuilding. I'm no good with techy stuff."

"I don't know..." Ray said. "You may not be Gabe-level, but you're pretty handy with your tablet."

"Eh." Allie said, as Gabe sputtered.

"What, I'm a _level_ of tech geek now?!" Ray and Allie burst out laughing. Gabe eventually laughed along.

"We can start looking for the Water stone on my projector." Gabe said, shifting the topic.

"There's a huge chance it isn't in the city." Allie reminded him. "The Heart was in a random cave in the middle of nowhere."

Ray nodded. "Yeah, Allie might end up looking around while you build."

Gabe also nodded. "Alright. But you still have to help me sometimes, I want to be as efficient as possible."

"Yeah, I know." Allie said. "You just want to see your _girlfriend_..." she teased him slightly.

Gabe flushed. "Wh-whatever."

"In any case..." Ray said, hiding his snicker. "...we also know more about everything that's happening. For example, we found out the decoys are coming to Allie because they use the power of the Cloak."

"And that the Choten is still alive." Allie added, ominously.

Gabe recoiled, eyes wide. "_**No**_...I mean, we've discussed it, but he can't actually-"

"He's not strong..." Ray said. "...but he's trying to heal. He may try to take over again."

"For now, we need to focus on the keys." Allie added.

Gabe nodded. "Alright." He turned to the projector so Ray and Allie couldn't see the terror in his eyes.

_The Choten is alive..._

Ray sighed. "I should go." Allie and Gabe nodded. Ray summoned Bob and banished himself to Fire. Allie stretched and sighed.

"I'm going to prepare myself a room." she said. Gabe grunted, which Allie took as an "okay", and walked into her new room. Setting it up to her preferences, she lied down on her bed.

"Hey!"

Allie jolted up. "Ray?"

He grinned his signature grin. "Yeah."

"No. You're a decoy." Allie groaned. "I swear to god, you need to stop messing with my-"

Decoy-Ray covered her mouth with his hand. "Shh." he whispered. "Let me tell you the last lines."

Allie sighed and nodded.

"When the five are together and aligned, the chant will seal fate, intertwined." decoy-Ray finished.

Allie nodded. "Okay. I will find the five and make the portal to answers."

"Don't forget the price you pay." decoy-Ray reminded her.

"_What is it?!_" she exclaimed. Decoy-Ray only smiled as he faded away.

"Allie?" Allie turned her head to the doorway to see Gabe. "I heard yelling, so I-" He stopped short when he saw the tears running down her face.

"I know it makes me weak to cry." she murmured darkly. "But I've _had it_ with these stupid decoys...constantly playing with my emotions. What is the damned chant? What kind of price will we pay to find the damned portal to answers?"

Gabe sighed. "I'm sorry Allie."

"It's not your fault." she muttered. "I'm going to summon Cryptic Worm and search for the Water stone." Gabe could only nod as she walked out of the room.

_Questions, questions, answers are lost_

_The portal to answers can be found, at a cost_

_The lost answers are connected in a web of truth_

_The first key is the heart of the dragon's tooth_

_The second is the gem of the shining star_

_Whose light gives hope to near and far_

_The third is a sparkling crystal jewel_

_Which is made of water, warm and cool_

_The fourth is a stone of spiritual union_

_The tribal god's special fusion_

_The fifth and last is compact darkness_

_Whose power is terrifying and heartless_

_When the five are together and aligned_

_The chant will seal fate, intertwined._

**Author's Note: Please don't kill me! School is killing me enough! I know...excuses excuses, but school is really a pain right now. I know you want to murder me for my update speed...I want to murder me too. (That makes no sense.) I hope you're enjoying the story...I know it has too much dialogue, it's not well written and the plot is weird...please bear with me. **

**-Phantom**


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter Twenty-One! Here we go!**

Chapter Twenty-One: Emotions versus Logic (During Week 6)

Allie searched the outskirts of the city on the back of Cryptic Worm. She had a glare on her face. She was sick of the stupid cloak, it constantly teasing her. Using her emotions to mess with her.

"Emotions are stupid." she said aloud. Cryptic Worm didn't answer.

She found a cave and entered curiously. _Is the Water stone in here?_ she thought. She jumped off of Cryptic Worm and commanded it to stay.

"I see you have already found the second cave." the Water mystic's voice rang into the cave. Allie nodded at the Water figure.

"You are a talented girl, Allison." the Water mystic said. "In this cave you will see a puzzle, and you will have to solve it." He faded, and the wall behind him opened. Allie walked in and found a bunch of pieces. She scrunched her face up.

"What could the answer be?" she muttered. She attempted to put the pieces together, but only succeeded into fitting one piece into another correctly. She refused to give up though.

She messed with the pieces for a little longer, then sighed.

"How am I gonna solve this?" she murmured. "Gabe's good at these puzzles, not me..."

Suddenly, she had an idea. "Finbarr, Council of Logos!" she summoned. The creature approached her through the veil, slightly apprehensively.

"Please help me solve this puzzle." Allie asked of the Council member.

The creature sighed. "Although I do not particularly like you, human, I will do it. I love puzzles."

Allie hid her annoyed-ness, and watched him work on the puzzle. When it was completed, she smiled.

"Thanks," she said, before banishing him. She held the puzzle up. It was shaped like a trident. She inserted it into the three holes in the wall, and a small compartment appeared from the wall. Allie picked up the Water stone, suddenly feeling...super intelligent.

"Woah." she muttered. "This thing is unbelievable."

She returned to Cryptic Worm and rode back to Gabe, excited to tell him the news.

* * *

><p>Ray managed the outposts fairly well, completing one a day. In fact, he had a sort of mental map created of where each was. He also knew he had about ten more before he would change over to Nature.<p>

"Not bad." he muttered to himself. "Not bad."

* * *

><p>Gabe worked steadily with Gargle to organize the groups for the Southwestern quadrant. The poor creature was tired, but Gabe seemed to be adamant to rest.<p>

"Gabe!" Allie burst in.

"One second." Gabe shushed her. "Gargle, group seven of Aqua Striders should work on the next building." He turned around. "Alright, what is it Allie?"

"First of all, what are you doing to Gargle? He looks exhausted!"

Gabe looked, and indeed, Gargle looked like he wanted to collapse. "Oh! I'm so sorry Gargle, after that message, go take a break. I'll call you after you rest." For once, the Cyber Lord was grateful for Allie's presence.

"And two, I found the Water Stone."

"What?!" Gabe shouted, jumping up. "That's great!"

Allie nodded. She pulled it out and put it in his hand. "Woah." he whispered, immediately. "This is quite a powerful stone..."

Allie nodded again. "Yeah."

"We should take it to Master Nadia at the end of the week."

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking."

"Alright then. Should I keep it with me, or will you take it?"

"You keep it." Allie said, immediately. "That's too much knowledge for me, it makes my brain hurt. You can use it for the time being anyway, use it to help the rebuilding."

Gabe laughed. "Okay. Thanks Allie."

The moment he turned back to the projector, his entire viewpoint changed. Seven of the groups were in the wrong place, and two of the buildings needed to be redone. Since he had time before Gargle would be done resting, he went over the other quadrants too.

Allie went to her room to write another letter to her dad, having just received one saying similar things, like "I miss you", "I'm doing fine" and all that. After she was done, she lied down.

"Hi." she said to herself. "I'm Allison Underhill, but everyone calls me Allie. My life's should be fine, but growing up is a pain. I'm already worried about school starting even though I have a few weeks. Also, emotional problems suck. No, emotions suck. Experiencing them makes me want to stuff my face in a pot." She laughed at herself. "I'm talking to myself, because I'm just that awesome." She closed her eyes and imagined her dad.

"Hey dad, I miss you." Allie whispered. "But I'm coming home soon, you'll see."

Gabe stared at the projector. He was fine with the other quadrants, but like playing chess, he was completely rethinking his strategy for the Southwestern one.

"Logically, they should go there." Gabe murmured. "But if they move to the next one, maybe..."

"Battery, one hundred percent!" a certain cyberlord burst in, interrupting his train of thought. Gabe managed a small smile.

"Good, because I have a lot of work for you. You ready?"

"Totes, OMG!"

* * *

><p>Ray sat down after completing his ninth-to-last outpost. He had fun with this one, it was actually a little irregular. The shape required a lot of flying, and Ray loved flying with Tatsurion.<p>

A veil breech opened, and his parents hopped through.

"Hey mom, hey dad!" Ray greeted, hugging them. He wished he could go back with them, but he knew it wouldn't work.

"Hi Ray, how's everything going?" Janet asked, shaking him out of his thoughts.

"Great. How's your new job, dad?"

* * *

><p><em>Questions, questions, answers are lost<em>

_The portal to answers can be found, at a cost_

_The lost answers are connected in a web of truth_

_The first key is the heart of the dragon's tooth_

_The second is the gem of the shining star_

_Whose light gives hope to near and far_

_The third is a sparkling crystal jewel_

_Which is made of water, warm and cool_

_The fourth is a stone of spiritual union_

_The tribal god's special fusion_

_The fifth and last is compact darkness_

_Whose power is terrifying and heartless_

_When the five are together and aligned_

_The chant will seal fate, intertwined._

**AN: I'm really sorry about my slow update speed. I'm starting to lose sight of what my story was originally going to be about, so it'll take me a little time to correct my path while keeping the storyline. Although you have every right to be mad at me, please expect REALLY slow updates as school and extracurriculars are also coming in full force.**

**~Phantom**


	22. Chapter 22

**Hopefully this chapter is slightly long...I really owe it for my lack of updating. I really am sorry.**

Chapter Twenty-Two: Talking, Traitors and Terror (End of Week 6)

As they went to clean up, Gabe went to meet Master Nadia. He bowed to her before displaying the Water stone.

"It'll feel unbelievable." Gabe warned. He placed the stone in her hand. Her eyes widened.

"I'm...amazed." Master Nadia whispered. She straightened her posture. "I will keep this with me at all times."

"Thank you."

* * *

><p>Gabe and Allie summoned Tatsurion and banished themselves before the poor creature could even complain.<p>

Ray's smiling face greeted the two duelists as the Fire civilization appeared before their eyes.

"Hi Ray!" Allie greeted, smiling.

"Good to see you." Gabe said.

"Hey guys. How was cleanup this week?" Ray asked.

"Well, besides the Water stone-"

"Wait, you found the Water stone?!"

"-cleanup was pretty uneventful." Allie completed her sentence.

Gabe laughed. "Yeah, Allie found the stone. I gave it to Master Nadia."

"What was it like?" Ray asked eagerly.

Allie shuddered. "Too much to comprehend," she complained. "so I gave it to Gabe with no issues. It made my head hurt."

Ray and Gabe laughed. "It really helped me with the cleanup," Gabe admitted. "but I gave it to Master Nadia without a problem. It can be overwhelming."

"Well that's all good then." Ray said with a sigh. "So what's next on our agenda?"

"How's your cleanup going?"

"Good, I'll probably be going to Nature next week."

"That's great!" Allie exclaimed. "Nice job, Ray!"

The three of them high-fived. "So..." Gabe said. "Did you guys start the summer reading?"

Allie and Ray gave him weird looks simultaneously. "Gabe, _nobody_ does summer reading until the night before." they said at the same time. They instantly reddened without looking at each other, remembering a certain moment with a certain dragon monarch of Fire.

"Anyway," Allie quickly changed the subject. "Sorry to change the subject from normal topics, but I was thinking that I should probably go back to darkness to look for the Darkness gem."

Ray and Gabe nodded. "I had forgotten." Gabe commented.

"You can stay in Fire with me until I switch to Nature, then go back to Darkness." Ray suggested.

"Good idea." Allie said, nodding.

Gabe hid a smirk. He knew the two wanted to stick together, for obvious reasons. I mean come on, they're the only two who don't realize they like each other.

They kept talking, mainly about what they missed from home and what they could do without.

Suddenly, a loud explosion shook the palace. The three were thrown onto the ground. Ray fell on top of Allie, causing the two to blush. **(AN: Hehe, I'm evil. :D)**

"What was that?" Tatsurion asked, peeking into the room. The three hastily got up and went with him outside.

A legion of guards defended as the huge dragon attacked, roaring and shooting. Ray hissed instantaneously.

"_Morkaz_."

Growling, Tatsurion pulled Ray onto his back and flew up to attack.

"Draglide, the Swiftest!" Allie summoned.

"Uh, uh...Hyperspeed Dragon!" Gabe summoned, thinking as fast as he could. The two joined Ray and Tatsurion in the air.

Tatsurion growled at the offending dragon. "Bob, missiles!" Ray shouted. The hybrid shot a battalion's worth of missiles at the enormous beast of a dragon. Morkaz grinned at the duo.

"Oh, you two will actually fight?" the dragon cackled. "I have nothing to lose anymore. Infernus announced that he no longer needs my services, as I don't work well with my _brother_, or Infernus's _favored human_." he accentuated teasingly.

Ray glared. "You deserve worse!" he announced, boldly.

"No Ray, this has nothing to do with you. He is jealous that I have a purebreed dragon status now." Tatsurion chided.

"If it has to do with you, it has to do with me." Ray shot, defiantly. Allie flew up, also shooting. Gabe gave an attack kata.

"Do your...punching the sound barrier thing." Gabe said. The creature obeyed. The fire creatures were attacking well, as Infernus refusing Morkaz's services was as bad as him being branded a traitor.

It quickly became a huge duel. Tatsurion the Unchained, Draglide the Swiftest, Hyperspeed Dragon and Fire Guards against Morkaz the Defiant.

As Tatsurion launched flaming spikes, Allie had Draglide shoot missiles. Gabe had Hyperspeed Dragon perpetually launching fast, flaming fists. **(AN: Yes, triple alliteration!)**

Of course, at the same time, Morkaz defended himself with his wings. The missiles ended up hitting many guards and occasionally hit the palace. In that confusion, he launched his counterattack. He shot missiles, flaming, at Ray and Allie,mcausing both duelists to fall back. He was hit by a Hyperspeed fist though, and was pushed back.

Tatsurion raged, letting his body into flames. He launched spikes and missiles, while also flying up and punching Morkaz in the face.

Sensing defeat, the dragon turned and flew away.

"He sure ran tail between his legs." Gabe commented.

The three returned inside, helping clean up the slight mess. The guards had defended the palace very well and it had not sustained much, if any, damage at all.

"It's time for me to go too." Gabe noted. He summoned Gargle and banished himself, Allie and Ray waving to him as he faded into Water.

"So," Ray said, awkwardly.

Allie giggled. "So." she repeated teasingly. They grinned at each other before Allie went to her room to write her dad a letter.

Ray sat in his room, feeling his burning cheeks. He finally understood why he felt so strange around Allie.

He liked her.

Now I'm pretty sure every single person in the world was aware of that except him, and maybe Allie, but he had just realized it. He was no good with emotions, that's for sure. But he did slowly understand that the slight fluttery feeling in his chest and the heat in his cheeks came from his feelings for the Darkness duelist.

He didn't know what to do, and he wasn't planning on doing anything, that is, at least until they got back to San Campion. Then maybe he'd go to his parents and grandpa for assistance.

At the same time, Allie wrote a quick letter to her dad about her fake progress.

She could feel a sort of presence, even after she gave the letter to Slyth, and activated the Cloak.

"You found me." a voice whispered.

"Another decoy?" Allie asked with a sigh.

"Yes. I have been sent to explain myself." the voice whispered. "I am Kaiju, mage of the null. I send the decoys to you by harnessing the magic in the Cloak."

"I know how." Allie answered, turning to see a ghost-like figure. "I want to know more about you." Ray peeked in, but Allie shushed him.

"As I said, my name is Kaiju. I am a sort of oracle, and the Null Zone feeds on my power. It is a good thing too, if it didn't, my being would explode, and so would the Kaiju realm.

If you bring the five stones together and chant a sacred chant, you will unlock the portal to the stars, or in official terms, the Portal of Truth. Each person who enters can ask a question about the past, present or future and will get it answered. But there is a cost. My life force would be drained, and the Null Zone would take the lives of one creature from each Civilization to resurrect me."

Ray was mystified to hear all this. He made a mental note of every word. He needed to tell the Masters. Were they aware of this Kaiju?

"Is that everything?"

"Yes. The chant can be given to you once you bring the stones to the Null Zone, by yours truly. But you will also have to bring a creature of each Civilization as sacrifice. And if you plan to, I would hurry. The Empress of Dread and her Human ally plan to seize the stones."

"_How?!_"

"I cannot answer. It is up to you, Allison Underhill, and your allies, Raiden Pierce-Okamoto and Gabriel Wallace. And I am aware Raiden stands at the door."

Ray entered sheepishly, while Allie looked terrified.

"_Creature sacrifices?!_" she yelped. "I'm not okay with that..."

"You cannot open the portal then. You should focus on protecting the stones, instead."

"Understood." Allie whispered. She took a deep breath. "Thank you."

The being faded. Ray and Allie stared at each other.

"So," Ray said awkwardly, wincing.

"So," Allie whispered in response, feeling her eyes wellup with tears for the millionth time this summer.

**Alright, so I tried to fit in an explanation. So now the focus will probably remain on the stones, Megaria and the Choten, and the relationship between the three. I'm just putting that out there because I know the way I've written is a slight pain to follow. Well, I hope you enjoyed. Hope you don't hate me for my update speed. Ja mata, ne.**

**~Phantom/Phantom-chan**


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter twenty-three! Let's go!**

Chapter Twenty-Three: Of Progress and Achievement (During Week 7)

Gabe worked steadily on the last quadrant, wincing at the work in front of him. He had plenty of work in the quadrant, not to mention three or four outposts to help fix.

"44%." he said aloud. Gargle focuses his gaze in the exhausted boy.

"Is G-abriel not sleeping?" Gargle asked.

"I don't know. I'm just tired."

"Gargle will handle for a while. Recharge battery."

"Gargle, I can't put all of this on-"

"No arguments. Bed. ASAP!"

Gabe smiled. "Thanks." he thanked the Cyber lord sleepily. He lied down and fell asleep within seconds.

* * *

><p>Ray built the outside of of his second-to-last outpost. Directing Tatsurion carefully, the mountain-shaped outpost was almost finished.<p>

Allie was on the other side, enforcing the opening on the bottom. She didn't like being so close to where those bomb-weapon-things came out of, so she hastily finished the supports. When she was done, she directed Galzaak to Ray and Tatsurion.

They finished up then returned to the palace. Allie banished Galzaak and the three went to Infernus's throne room.

"You will be going to Nature tomorrow?" Infernus asked Ray. He nodded.

"Yes, your highness."

"Well, you go with my blessing. But you are still my favored human, and I intend for that to stay that way."

"Yes your highness."

"Then you will stay in darkness?" he inquired of Allie.

"Yes, your highness." Allie answered.

"Then that is all. You are dismissed. We will talk before the two of you leave tomorrow."

Ray and Allie nodded, bowed, and exited with Tatsurion.

"Alright. I'm going to rest in my room," Allie announced. Ray nodded and smiled, accidentally brushing her hand with his own. Allie turned and walked to her room, ignoring the tingling electricity creeping up and down her wrist.

Allie's mind immediately lingered to Kaiju. The Null Zone constantly fed on her power. Was it like...torture?

Allie shook her head. "Focus." she told herself. "Tomorrow you have to go to Darkness and search for the gem. Try to think where there could be a cave."

Ray was busy preparing to go to Nature. He had already discussed it with Tatsurion, who was reluctant, but agreed to the plan. He was also worried about Allie. The only civilizations she was safe in would be Darkness, Fire and Water. That meant that after tomorrow, she could only be in Darkness and Water. Megaria and the Choten's home turfs, respectively.

He rubbed his temples. "Too much thinking," he decreed to himself. "Let's go out flying." He walked to a Tatsurion and the two did a sweep of the city, and some of the outskirts too.

Creatures were busy with their jobs, in the marketplace or in the arena. All around was the hustle and bustle of the Fire civilization, always roaring to keep moving.

Ray smiled. This was his way, always pushing ahead. At the same time, Nature had his way too. Always pushing forward, but together.

Together, Ray, Allie and Gabe could do anything. Nothing ever kept them down for too long.

Together.

* * *

><p>Gabe woke up to see Gargle buzzing anxiously. "Is everything okay?" he asked the scatterbrained cyberlord.<p>

Gargle nodded. "Task: Rebuild Southwestern Quadrant. Progress: 79%. Hit continue?"

Gabe looked shocked. "Really?" he exclaimed. "Gargle, that's great! Yes! Hit continue!"

Gargle buzzed happily, his head lighting up to direct more groups.

"You know, I'm usually so busy thinking of different solutions, I completely forget how smart you are." Gabe complimented, grinning.

"Thank you, G-abriel."

* * *

><p>Busy with the last outpost, Ray and Allie finished repairs in record time. Once done, the Fire guards cheered.<p>

"Rebuilding is complete!" one shouted.

"We can move forward!" another said, raising its hands in victory.

Ray and Allie grinned at them before returning to the palace. Their cheer had rubbed off on them, they were in high spirits as they bowed in front of the mighty Fire monarch.

"Congratulations, tiny ones." Infernus complimented. "Believe it or not, thanks to you, the Fire rebuilding is complete. As a thank you, take these specially crafted knives."

Each getting a beautiful golden knife, they bowed and thanked Infernus.

"You are dismissed."

Ray and Allie high-fived once out of the view of the dragon monarch. "Yes!" Ray exclaimed, pumping a fist. Allie laughed at him.

"Alright, I'm grabbing my stuff. Meet you in your room to say bye." Allie stated, running to her room.

Allie stuffed everything into her bag and met Ray in his room, his backpack also packed. They hugged quickly.

"See you in Water." Allie said.

"See you in Water." Ray replied. Allie summoned Squeaky and banished herself. Ray summoned a quillspike and banished himself, along with Bob, to Nature.

The first thing Ray saw was the Quillspike harvesting crop. "Let's get to work." he said, content.

Allie glanced around and hopped onto Squeaky's back. "Alright girl, time to look for that Darkness gem." she whispered.

* * *

><p>Gabe steadily brought the progress up to 91% by the end of the day. Ecstatic, he pumped a fist.<p>

"Gargle, we're doing so well!" he said.

Gargle didn't look tired at all. "Correct. Next question: will G-abriel sleep now?" Gabe nodded.

"Yeah. I need some sleep. But we'll keep working, together." he responded, grinning.

"A-okay. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Gargle."

**Sorry about how short this chapter is. Sorry it's a filler. But I did try to push it along, now I might have a few more duels and such. Let's hope...well, tell me what you think!**

**~Phantom-chan**


	24. Chapter 24

**Sorry, this is a slightly short (and incredibly late) chapter. Hope you enjoy anyway.**

Chapter Twenty-Four: Possibilities (During and End of Week 7)

When Gabe woke up, the first thing he saw was a bright light.

"Congratulations, G-abriel!" he heard. "100%!" Gabe shot out of bed.

"What?! Wait, really?! We finished?!" Gabe exclaimed, quickly. Pretty energetic for someone who had just woken up...

"Correct! Task: Southwestern quadrant. Status: Complete. Next task: outpost." Gargle rambled slightly, in his adorable way. Gabe nodded, getting up and viewing the holographic projection.

"Let's do this."

* * *

><p>Allie explored each cavern, not finding any good location. She sighed and pet Squeaky. "This is going to take a while, huh girl?" Squeaky chittered. Allie sighed again.<p>

"Cloak, you could be more helpful." Allie muttered. Squeaky looked at her like she grew a second head. Allie chuckled. "I know, I know. I'm just...tired, I think."

Suddenly, the cloak felt heavier. Allie glanced to see what looked like a wall, was actually a shadow. Excitedly looking at her partner, the two went into the cave, greeted by the Darkness mystic.

"That was clever, Allison. If you continue inside, you will find the Darkness gem." the mystic told her. "There will be a small riddle. I will open the door now." A small entrance opened.

Allie walked inside, Squeaky following her.

Allie saw two paths. "Choose the path that is correct, and you'll find the gem. The incorrect path will lead you into eternal darkness." she read. "Cheery. No pressure at all." Squeaky chittered nervously. "Okay girl, you stay back. If I don't come out after two hours or so...tell Ray and Gabe they were the best friends...besides you girl, and tell my dad I love him. Or tell Ray and Gabe to tell him I said it." Squeaky freaked out.

"Calm down, girl. It's just in case."

Allie released the Cloak, and looked at the paths in perspective. One seemed to radiate comfort, and the other, fear. It should be that the fear would have to be Darkness, but...

Allie took a step into the path she chose. She walked for a while, and it got darker. Her heart sank. Had she chosen the wrong path?

Then, the path opened into a room. A simple pedestal with the gem stood in the middle of the room. Allie sighed in relief and picked it up. A new passageway opened, and Allie found Squeaky pacing back and forth. The elated Darkness creature practically tackled her.

"Squeaky!" Allie yelped, laughing. She tucked the gem into her pocket, then hugged the ecstatic Chimera in response. "I was worried I would never see you again."

Getting up, the partners hugged. "Love ya, girl."

* * *

><p>Ray soared over the Quillspike land on Tatsurion's back. Nature was much brighter than Fire, so it took his eyes a while to adjust.<p>

Tatsurion seemed a little happier than he expected. Maybe he was finally accepting his family and status, maturing a little.

More than ever, Ray felt powerful and happy. Yes, not everything was perfect. Yes, they were searching for important civilization stones. Yes, a power-hungry, seemingly bipolar, incredibly irritating lunatic was still on the loose. But for now, it was just him, his partner, and a vast Nature civilization.

And he felt free.

The duo landed in front of Headstrong Wanderer. "If you are done playing around, you can help your brothers with the harvest." she reprimanded.

"Mother," Tatsurion complained. "I'm a fighter, not a farmer..."

"No excuses, you have to help us make up for everything we lost." she scolded. "Afterwards you can help the other tribes. For now, farming."

Tatsurion moaned, to which Ray snickered. The duo went to help the Quillspike, Tatsurion being heckled by Prickleback and Razorhide mainly.

That is, until...

"What is that?!"

"Bob, that's a Tainted Quartz!" Ray shouted, alarmed. "One of the Choten's old creations!"

"Let's take it out, it's destroying the crop." Tatsurion said. Ray climbed on his back and Tatsurion charged towards the giant rock beast. The corrupted creature roared a deafening roar as Ray and Tatsurion attacked. Tatsurion threw a well-aimed punch, pushing the Tainted Quartz back.

"Quillspike rumblers, attack!" Headstrong Wanderer cried out. The duo ducked as the volley of spikes shit over their heads. But the spikes snapped at the tough rock form of the beast, and only managed to make it more irritated.

"Bob, flaming spikes!" Ray said. Putting up his mana shield, Ray watched the flaming spikes hit the rock beast and cause a small explosion.

Purely furious, the beast charged, taking out a filed's worth of crops. "The harvest!" Headstrong Wanderer shrieked. Tatsurion growled. He faced the creature's rampage, stopping it dead in its track and holding it in place. He put a chain around its neck and tugged, finding it to banish.

"Oh no." Ray murmured, eyes wide. "There was a duelist behind the attack."

"That you have right, Mr. Pierce-Okamoto."

Ray gasped. "You!"

* * *

><p>Gabe finished the building of an outpost, quickly as possible. He kept making sure all the tech was replaced as well as the structure.<p>

Monitoring the situation, he found he had finished one of nine outposts, and that Gargle was about to pass out from exhaustion.

"Sorry for pushing you like that, Gargle. I'm glad we finished one, now you should rest."

* * *

><p>Allie lied in her room for a bit. Tomorrow would be the day the masters expected them to come for a wash up, and the day Allie would give the gem to Master Jaha. Sighing, she played with the cloak a little, glad she had trained in its use. Or, she knew, she would have been consumed by it.<p>

She just hoped one day she would find a way to take it off, because she kept rejecting it and that wasn't doing anything.

She felt comfortable in Darkness, no doubt about that, but sometimes, she just wished she could hide in the light.

* * *

><p>Somewhere, dark and dreary, the corpse of a creature sits in the Null Zone. One of many, but this is a special one.<p>

A beautiful sorceress sat, closing her eyes, watching everything happening in the civilizations.

Directly in the center of the entire Kaiju realm, she fed upon the residual mana in the dead creature.

"I'm sorry." she whispered. "You are dead, yet I have no choice but to keep draining your mana. I wish...I wish I could not exist."

For the millionth time, as she has continued to say through these thousands of years, "Curse you, duel masters. You have protected humankind, but have forgotten creaturekind and me."

**What do you think? Let me know!**

**~Phantom-chan**


	25. Chapter 25

**For enduring my irritatingly long wait time, and being awesome people, here is another chapter, and at a good time!**

Chapter Twenty-Five: Comedic and Drama-Filled Moments (End of Week 7)

Allie summoned Gargle, banishing herself to water. Of course, after having put on the watersuit.

She smiled at Gabe. "Hey." she said.

"Hey," he responded.

"How are things?"

"Good! Three more outposts until I go to light."

"G-abriel just wants to hang out with Sasha." a certain water creature moaned. "Thumbs down."

Allie laughed at Gabe's discomforted and blushing face, before realizing, "Hey, where's Ray?"

* * *

><p>They made do with the temporary prison, but Ray was fuming as he walked towards the man.<p>

"I understand your hate for me, it isn't misplaced. And I know you're looking for the civilization stones-"

"_Shut up_." Ray growled menacingly.

"Dear boy, if you're mad about Suguru, I'm sorry but I don't know where he is-"

"Shut up!" Ray yelled. "My dad has nothing to do with you! And if you have any brain, you'll stop talking before I ask one of the many creatures who want to kill you right here to do their duty, Choten."

The man pretended to be unaffected, but he semi-visibly flinched. He was in no position of power, he couldn't do anything about it.

A creature shackled the Choten, around his arms and legs, and one around his neck. The man was getting even more nervous. Ray opened a breach in the veil and pushed him through, following shortly.

The masters gasped. "The Choten!" Master Kimora exclaimed.

"In chains, too!" Master Chavez added.

"We should take his gauntlet and put him in the vault." Master Jaha immediately suggested. Ray agreed, pulling off the gauntlet and smashing it beneath his feet.

"Wait, I know I have done wrong." The Choten quickly said. "And I don't blame you for punishing me. But I ask of you one thing, as a former duel master...where is Tierra? And Nigel?"

Ray knew he had hit a sore spot, considering the two hadn't been found yet. The only remnants of them were the deeply damaged laylines.

"We will not humor you." Master Nadia said menacingly. The masters escorted the man to the vault and locked the door. Completely, with so many precautions, it was almost unbelievable. They had stalker spheres monitoring every inch of the room.

"Well done, Raiden." Master Chavez told him. "We are proud of you."

"He is after the gems." Ray said. "Please, make sure you keep them safe."

"Of course." Master Nadia said. "You should return to your friends."

* * *

><p>"Good question." Gabe commented. "He's either late, or he's in trouble."<p>

Allie winced. "Knowing Ray..."

"Reef Prince, Glu-urrgle!" Ray materialized beside the two, looking beyond furious. They visibly flinched.

"Uh...hi, Ray..." Allie mumbled.

"A-are you okay?" Gabe stuttered slightly.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Ray said, calming down. "And the Choten is locked in the vault." Gabe's eyes widened.

"Okay, spill." Allie spoke for the two of them.

Ray explained everything that had happened, every single detail. At the end of the explanation, it was tense. It was so silent, one could hear a pin drop.

"Well, at least we don't have to worry anymore." Allie commented, breaking the silence.

"Do we continue the search for the gems?" Gabe asked.

"We don't need to." Ray replied. "We have two-"

"Three." Allie interrupted. "Sorry. I found the a Darkness gem and gave it to Master Jaha. She said, and I quote, 'I will protect this gem with my life, Allison. You continue to work on controlling that cloak.'" She mimicked her voice.

Ray snorted and Gabe smirked. Allie sighed. "I'm not that pathetic at controlling it..."

"You aren't, Allie," Ray said. "You're absolutely fine. And good job finding the gem. At least we don't have to keep searching now." He smiled at her gently. He ignored his feelings for her rising in his chest.

Gabe muttered something, about needing to check something. He jumped out of the door for a second. He grinned to himself. _Had Ray figured it out?_ He peeked in, watching.

Allie furrowed her brow. "That was weird." she commented, turning to look at Ray. Seeing his gentle smile, looking into her eyes, she felt her cheeks heat up. Ray's eyes suddenly widened and he turned away, quickly.

"It was weird." he agreed. Putting a hand to her cheek, Allie groaned at how hot it felt.

_I do not like Ray and he does not like me, I do not like Ray and he does not like me._ she said quickly, in her mind.

"So how are you?"

_IdonotlikeRayandhedoesnotlikeme_.

"I'm fine, I guess. You?"

"Well, now that the Choten's locked up, I guess I'm much better." he replied. The two sat in a slightly awkward silence. It wasn't uncomfortable, but they weren't sure what to say.

Meanwhile, right outside, Gabe was mentally facepalming. "_Please_, just say you like each other..." he moaned under his breath.

"So, Allie..." Ray started. He stopped.

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Uh...it's nothing."

"No, tell me."

"It's nothing."

"Ray! Now I'm curious!" Allie stood up, hands on her hips. "Tell me!"

Ray grinned sheepishly. "Really, it's nothing. I don't even remember what I was going to say."

Allie puffed out her cheeks, crossed her arms and glared at him. "Thanks a lot. Now you made me curious."

Ray chuckled. Allie kept glaring at him, but now it was definitely jokingly. After a few more seconds, they both collapsed into laughter.

Gabe sighed. "It's progress." he muttered. He re-entered the room, certain their little "moment" was over.

The trio talked for a little while longer, until it got slightly late. Then, Ray got up, announcing he should go back to Nature.

"Bye, Ray," Gabe said, waving.

"See you," Allie said, smiling slightly. Ray waved as he banished himself with Tatsurion.

Allie couldn't go with him to Nature, because she'd become a total enemy. He'd just have to see her in Water, and then she'd just stick around Darkness. Gabe glanced at her as she stared at the spot Ray had stood. He sighed.

"Okay, that's _it_!" Gabe groaned. "How long are you guys going to do this?!"

Allie tilted her head. "Do what?" she asked, confused.

"That! He just...you just...you guys..." Gabe stammered, irritated.

"Gabe...are you okay?" Allie asked, genuinely scared.

"How can you not tell you like each other?!" Gabe yelled. Allie immediately flushed, tomato red. Maybe redder.

"W-we do not like each other!" Allie yelped.

"Yes you do!"

"No we don't!"

"_Yes you do!_" Gabe shouted. He was really irritated at this point, and Allie was becoming redder by the second.

"Sh-shut up, Gabe." she muttered.

"You do!"

"So what?!" Allie exclaimed. "So what if I like him?! He's brave, strong, insane, kind, and I just...I just..."

Gabe calmed down. "Allie, it's not wrong. But you finally admitted it!"

"Don't tell him, okay?" Allie said, feeling small. "It'll ruin everything. Please?"

Gabe sighed, exasperated. "Fine." he consented. "But for what it's worth, he definitely likes you too."

* * *

><p>"They are not searching for them." The sorceress said, slightly sad. "Good. It's alright. I would have liked to meet them, though.<p>

"It's really too bad. But perhaps it's better. Less of a chance of me to kill them or another creature."

**Sorry, Gabe is slightly OOC in this chapter. Shows you how irritated and sick of this he was getting. XD **

**~Phantom-chan**


	26. Chapter 26

**Sorry...it's late, isn't it. And a filler chapter. Really, really sorry.**

Chapter Twenty-Six: Time to Feel Happy (During Week 8)

Allie loved helping, okay? She really did. Helping people made her feel nice, and she loved making other people happy. Every kind thing she could do would be done as soon as humanly possible.

But she was sick and tired of sitting, cooped up in a room, working on a holographic projection.

All she had managed to do was ruin two of the outposts she had been working on. Not one hint of progress. Not to mention that Gabe lectured her on "understanding space" and to "make good use of resources" every time she messed up.

She wanted to do something, get out of there. Yes, Gabe was finishing up an outpost. Yes, if she accomplished something, the Water rebuilding would be complete.

But she couldn't take it anymore.

She wanted to go out and do something! She wanted to do anything, duel even! She sighed and banged her head against the holographic projector.

"Allie, that is highly advanced, very delicate water technology. You shouldn't slam your head against-"

"I get it!" Allie shouted, cutting him off. She sighed. "I get it. I think I need a break."

Gave sighed too. "That is very understandable, Allie. I think you're done for now."

She nodded. "I'm going swimming."

Without really thinking about it, she left the room and randomly swam around the city. But what made more sense in the end was to visit the actual outpost she had been trying to fix.

Emphasis on trying.

She summoned Grybolos and went to the outpost. She saw a group of Aqua Soldiers working on the bottom. One looked like it was in charge, and his head was lit up. Allie almost shuddered to think that it was essentially Gabe telling this water creature to tell the other water creatures what to do. She looked at the entire outpost before talking to the lead Aqua Soldier.

"Hi, can you telepathically tell the Reef Prince that Allie says to Gabe that the back needs more creature support?" The creature nods, skeptically, but its head lights up. Allie led Grybolos back to the city, feeling pretty accomplished.

As soon as she entered the room, Gabe quickly thanked her. "Thanks Allie, that helped. I'm almost done."

Allie grinned, then lied on her bed. She planned to go back to Darkness after they finished, and ask Queen Kalima for a little more help to control the Cloak.

As soon as Gabe announced they were finished, King Tritonus telepathically thanked them and promised not to engage the other civilizations for a while as a reward.

"See you in Nature, Gabe." Allie said, banishing to Darkness.

"See you in Nature, Allie." Gabe replied, banishing to Light.

* * *

><p>Ray rubbed his sore arm. He hadn't realized how hard it was to harvest, especially for long periods of time. It was really pushing his arm muscles.<p>

Meanwhile, Tatsurion was getting scolded by his mother about his lack of efficiency, at which Razorhide and Prickleback were snickering. Ray shook his head with a slight smile as Tatsurion complained.

"I haven't harvested for a long time!"

"That is no excuse! Quillspike are farmers, and we harvest! We harvest efficiently!"

"Mother..."

Ray sighed. The day Tatsurion stopped being as stubborn as a mule - scratch that, as stubborn as a pack of mules - was probably the day Master Jaha dyed her hair blonde.

Ray pictured that, shuddered, and attempted to force it out of his mind.

Ray went back to harvesting, joined by Tatsurion, who looked positively frustrated.

Ray laughed. "Come on, Bob. You're not gonna die."

"I'm a fighter, not a farmer." he complained once again.

"You'll deal. Come on!"

* * *

><p>Gabe materialized in Light with a nervous smile. The brightness took a while to get used to, but it was still the beautiful keep of Light.<p>

"Hello Gabriel."

Gabe's grin widened. "Hi Sasha."

"We have a list of things we need to fix, so you can help us lead the groups to do what they should."

"Sounds perfect. Do we start now?"

"Yes, but before then, let me help you make a temporary base for yourself." she replied. She took his hand and led him to a room, Gabe blushing the entire way.

"Are you okay, Gabriel?"

"Perfect." he murmured back, still blushing.

Sasha let go of his hand, almost in realization, and nodded. "Let me know if you need anything. Once you are done, you may join us by the front of the keep." She left, and unbeknownst to Gabe, she also had a slight blush (for a light creature) on her face.

Gabe put his very little stuff on a small dresser. He set up base on the desk after examining the bed. Then he went outside to join Sasha.

The doors of the keep were still damaged from when Alakshmi, Heller and Fingers attempted to break in. Gabe winced at the thought, looking over at his girlfriend. He blushed deeply, thinking about it, but forced the thought out of his mind.

"As you see, Gabriel, our only damage to fix are the walls of this keep. It is rather difficult though, because the damage is constantly uneven. It takes a lot of precious metal and welding. The door I welded shut must also be pulled apart and repaired." Sasha explained everything. Gabe nodded in understanding.

He had a week to help, and he was going to see to it that it got finished.

* * *

><p>"Thank you for agreeing to teach me in the ways of the Cloak, your highness."<p>

"Of course, puny one. As long as you wield it, you may as well be of use." Allie nodded. "I sense your guilt, child. Do not be guilty, for it was the traitorous Megaria who put this on you."

Allie sighed. "That's true." she agreed, feeling immensely better. "Who knows how she even managed to get it."

"She may have used a power similar to Kaiju's."

Allie stopped short. "Kaiju?"

"The Mage of the Null. Do the Masters not talk about her and her great sacrifice?" Allie shook her head.

Kalima looked dangerously upset. "That is a traitorous thing to do. Worse than keeping us in perpetual sleep."

Allie's eyes widened. "W-What did she do?"

Kalima motioned for her to sit. "It is a bit of a long story..."

* * *

><p>"Kalima..." the sorceress whispered. A tear trickled down her face. She touched it curiously. "Tears? I still have them?" She began to cry. "I'm not human anymore. How c-can I cry?"<p>

She wiped away the tears. "Kalima, thank you for telling her. You never betray me as your nature suggests. It is only mankind who has betrayed me." She paused.

"So thank you, creaturekind."

**Cliffhanger! What do you think? What you say means a lot to me. The next chapter should be slightly better. Maybe. Hopefully.**

**~Phantom-chan**


	27. Chapter 27

**I have to admit, this may be my best chapter. Ever. I wrote it in two hours, of semi-continuous writing. Here it is!**

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Kaiju (End of Week 8)

Gabe grinned as they finished yet another task. They still had a good two or three walls, including the one they had his all that time ago. But good progress, and not as much stress for sure.

So he summoned, "Tatsurion the Unchained!" and banished himself to Nature.

* * *

><p>Allie felt a tear run down her cheek. After she told Kaiju's story to Ray and Gabe today, they would go back to the Temple. And she would talk to the Masters.<p>

_How could they do that?_

She summoned Tatsurion and banished the two of them to Nature.

* * *

><p>Ray waited after Gabe materialized for Allie. Saying a quick hello, Allie soon showed herself. She looked strangely serious.<p>

"How is everything?" Allie asked.

"We are progressing extremely well in Light." Gabe grinned. "We only have a few more walls to repair."

"Things are good around here. We finished harvesting with the Quillspike, helped the Wild Veggies and are doing some Bronze-Arm healing." Ray replied with a smile. "How about you, Allie?"

"I've been learning how to use the Cloak with Queen Kalima." Allie said. "And she told me a very interesting story about Kaiju, Mage of the Null."

After Ray briefly explained to Gabe who she was, Allie began her story.

_It was the time of the creature-human war. Wars had broken out on every part of the globe, with many losing their lives._

_Refuges from all sorts of places banded together in different places, all trying to escape the fighting. Eventually, those groups become known as "Rings". There were about forty total, mainly small ones consisting of eight or nine people. But there were three large rings, all with over thirty people. They were called "Heroes Ring", "Silver Ring" and "Monster Ring"._

_A young girl named Lia, with her parents, were part of the Monster Ring. The people in the ring were constantly fending off thieves and robbers from the others. One time, when. Lia was about thirteen, in battle with Silver spies, a band of Fire creatures found them. Both of Lia's parents died in the attack._

"Mama! Papa!"

_A boy in the Monster Ring, about fifteen, grabbed her and dragged her away. She was beyond devastated, she became insane. She grabbed a dragon's tooth, made it into a sword, and fought off the creatures herself. Later on, she would develop this sword into a highly powerful one. She also gave herself a new name._

_Kaiju._

_Strange Beast._

_She became the Masters' highest level duelist. They trained her specially._

"Well done, Kaiju. You are getting stronger." _the Master of Darkness told her._ "What is your drive? Your motivation?"

"I don't have any. My parents are dead, my friends are dead, those of the Monster Ring are dead." _It's true, the people of the Monster Ring had died shortly after the incident with Kaiju's parents due to a Nature creature rampage._

"Then why are you so determined?"

"Because I must fill the null within me, left by the hole in my heart. The creatures have taken everything from me, I will return the favor."

"Kaiju, we fight to save both mankind and creaturekind. We have no intention to destroy them."

"And why might that be?"

"Because it's the right thing to do."

_That day, Kaiju's morals changed. She fought to fill the null continuously, but in a way the creatures wouldn't lose everything._

_One day, in a battle with a Darkness creature, her eye was destroyed. She won, but at the cost of her eye. The Masters used a spell that gave her an eye, but it was a creature-style eye, and she became very adept at spells herself._

_But she was still empty inside, and continued to feel the hole in her heart._

_She developed another kind of spell: the spell of Null. But in her first attempt, she nearly destroyed herself. Her spell caused her, in the end, to drain nearby mana involuntarily. The mana would dissipate though, so she didn't gain any._

_She continued to fight for the Masters, as empty as before._

_Then, the Masters developed the Veil Creation spell. They were anxious to use it, but there was one problem._

_Kaiju's eye, being a creature's eye, would cause her to go with the creatures._

_But instead of being wary, Kaiju urged the Masters use it. She helped perform the spell, and used the mana of nearby creatures to boost the mana of the Masters. Before she disappeared, the Masters promised to find her for her sacrifice. Holding her sword proudly, she told them she had finally filled the Null in her._

_She disappeared. The Masters began to attempt to map out the creature realm, when they came upon the Null Zone._

"Kaiju."

_But they never went after her, never went in. All that they found were five stones of each civilization, each born of the death of a creature._

_They hid these, the mystics in charge of them._

_They named the art of dueling after her, "Kaijudo"._

_And they never saw her again._

As Allie finished her story, a tear running down her face, her anger seemed to radiate off of her. Ray and Gabe sat shell shocked.

"W-What?"

"Is this for real?"

Allie nodded. "I'm going to talk to the Masters about this. And we're going to find her and bring her to the Human realm."

Gabe looked startled while Ray nodded in agreement.

"W-Wait, are you sure? Maybe they don't know."

"That's why I need to tell them." Allie said, even more determined. "She...she was only sixteen when she became locked here. Forever. She...has been here for thousands of years. We need to help her."

The three locked eyes. And when Ray opened the veil to go to the temple, no words needed to be uttered for them to know what to do.

After showering et cetera et cetera, Ray, Allie and Gabe faced the Masters. Allie said the story.

But the trio didn't get the shocked, tearful reaction they had thought they were going to get.

"We know." Master Kimora said. "That is the Temple's oldest and most heavily guarded secret."

"So why don't you do anything about it?!" Ray exclaimed, shocked.

"The first Masters...their orders were for the Duel Masters to only know. And to not look for her." Master Jaha explained.

The three were shocked as they stood there. Allie clenched her hands into fists. Her chest tightened.

"Well if you don't...I will." she said quietly, her anger radiating to every corner of the room. She released the Cloak and let it flow around her. She stormed out of the room, quickly followed by Ray and Gabe, the Masters not short after.

They all went to stop her.

But she suddenly gained speed, opened a veil breach, and disappeared.

"Allie!" Gabe cried.

"Allison!" the Masters yelped.

"ALLIE!" Ray screamed.

**Let me know what you think! I love to hear from you. Whether good or bad, I'd like to know what you think. Hopefully this is also pretty early to release another chapter, so I can get away considering my next chapter will probably be really late...*sheepish look***

**~Phantom-chan**


	28. Chapter 28

**Sorry...uh...chapter.**

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Meet Again

Ray paced back and forth.

"Raiden, we understand your worry. It is not misplaced, but-" Master Kimora started to say.

"Please, please don't." Ray cut him off.

"Ray, I think you're just making the Masters more nervous." Gabe said quietly. Gabe had been mapping out what they knew of the Null Zone with the Masters, but Ray just couldn't sit still.

"There's nothing I can do about that." Ray hissed in response. He didn't blame the Masters for what happened, per say, but he had nothing to beat up. In other terms, he was misguidedly directing his anger at something he could see.

His parents rushed in. The Masters had called them when Allie had disappeared an hour back, mainly to calm Ray down, and they had finally arrived.

"Ray...I'm so sorry." Janet Pierce-Okamoto hugged her fuming son. When Ken joined too, hugging him, Ray felt tears covering his face. Slowly, his tight throat relaxed.

"I'm sorry too." he whispered.

"Now that that's taken care of..." Master Jaha muttered under her breath. The Masters shared a sort of relieved-anxious smirk.

"Let me help you with the maps." Ken requested. The Masters nodded in agreement. It was well known that Ken had studied these maps the most as Master.

After about another half an hour, the Masters had planned the route.

"Master Jaha, Master Nadia, and Gabriel will take this route. Master Kimora, Uncle Isao and Master Chavez will take this one. I and Raiden will take this one." Ken laid out. "That should cover the Null Zone. Whoever finds Allison first should radio their location, and we will all come there. If Kaiju is found, be extremely cautious. Try not to summon creatures, and do not summon creatures within twenty feet of Kaiju if she is found. Watch your mana as well."

The Masters backed this up, but one person didn't agree. "Oh, you are not leaving me behind!" Janet exclaimed angrily. "Allie has been like a daughter, or at least, a friend of mine. She is one of my son's closest friends. And if you plan to go, Ken, you will not tell me to stay at the Temple."

Ray was with his father. "Mom, if we take longer than expected, Grandpa will need someone to take care of him."

"Janet, listen to Ray. We have faith in your abilities, but we cannot afford any risks right now." Ken argued. Janet glared.

"Fine, I will stay. If one thing goes wrong, one single thing, you will all regret it." she stormed away, against a pleading Ken's wishes. He sighed.

"Alright then." Master Jaha said, clearing her throat. "Here are the radios. Master Isao, please open a breach to the Null Zone area we agreed upon."

Ken, Master Nadia and Master Chavez each took a map. Before they left, Master Nadia and Chavez hugged quietly. The moment they materialized, they set off.

"We're coming, Allie." Ray whispered.

* * *

><p>It was safe to say Allie was miserable.<p>

She sighed. She didn't have food or water, and she hadn't found Kaiju yet. In fact, she was worried she wouldn't find Kaiju at all.

She sighed. She didn't want to use mana (hello-Null Zone) but she was running out of options. She released the Cloak.

"Lead me to Kaiju." she commanded, using a version of the spell she learned from Queen Kalima.

The Cloak pulled her forward. She hurried along the path, increasing speed.

As the Cloak's tendrils snaked around her, she felt at ease. Why wasn't she losing mana?

She rushed forward, then stumbled into a clearing. She tripped, picked herself up and brushed herself off.

"The Cloak is infused with special mana, one that cannot be drained easily. Even by me."

Allie gasped and turned. She pulls the Cloak back it. "Kaiju?" she asked, hushed.

A beautiful girl who couldn't be more than seventeen smiled. "Yes, Allison. Thank you for finding me."

Allie smiled. "Let's take you home." she replied gently. But something rustled, and some of the Masters came.

It was Master Kimora, Master Isao and Master Chavez. Not long after, Master Jaha, Master Nadia and Gabe came too.

"Allison!" Master Chavez exclaimed.

"You're safe." Gabe breathed out. She looked coldly at all of them.

"You shouldn't have followed me." she said. "And you can't stop me from taking Kaiju home."

That's when everything went wrong.

Master Isao gasped. "The Choten has escaped!"

"What?!" everyone exclaimed at once, including Kaiju.

When Allie looked at her curiously, she quickly explained, "I have watched everything in your world ever since I became trapped. I know what he has done, and hate him for it."

"Where's Raiden?" Master Nadia asked. "And Master Takahashi?"

* * *

><p>Ray ran alongside his father, determined to find Allie. That's when he saw the tree.<p>

He stopped suddenly, his father stopping a second after.

"What is it, Raiden?" Ray inspected the tree further, then pulled a small stone from the bark.

"What's this?" he asked. His father inspected it, when the mystic appeared from the tree.

"The tribal god's special fusion." he said. Ray groaned.

"Thank you, mystic." he said with a sigh. He waved as he and Ken continued to run down their path, finally reaching a clearing.

"Hey!" Ray called, seeing the group. They looked stressed. "Uh...Master Kimora? I have the Nature stone for you..."

He took it solemnly. "Raiden, the Choten has escaped." he added, gently.

Ray's world stopped. Everything froze. "No...you have got to be kidding me..."

"We need to go back, now." Master Chavez stated.

Master Isao summoned Panopter to return them to the temple. "Wait!" Allie cried. "We aren't going to leave without Kaiju!"

"Allison, do you want all of the creatures in the temple, plus the ones we duel with, to be drained of mana?" Master Jaha said, as if talking to a child.

She started to breathe heavily. "We can't leave her!" she cried. "We...we can't leave her here!"

"Go, Allison." Kaiju said, gently. "I will be fine here. I do not want to return to the human world, too much has changed. I will remain here for eternity."

"You can't do that! You can't sacrifice your freedom." Allie said. "You need to come home."

"This is my home. Creaturekind is my family." she replied.

"Then...then..."

"I will watch over you always." Kaiju whispered.

Allie began to cry, but wiped away her tears. She put her hand on Ray's as Master Isao began to banish them. "Goodbye, Kaiju."

"Goodbye, Allison. I hope we meet again."

* * *

><p>They materialized and began to put together a plan. Master Chavez, Nadia and Kimora would hunt the Choten down. Master Jaha, Ray, Allie and Gabe would inspect the Vault from which he escaped. Master Isao would check Panopter to see how the Choten escaped and if he could not, that would be part of the second group's job.<p>

Ray examined the large hole in the vault. The only thing strong enough to really cut through the thick metal could've been some sort of laser. He talked to Master Jaha. "Do you think one of the Choten's battle spheres could've hid here and done this?"

She sighed. "I think you are correct Raiden. Let us go back to Master Isao and your father and discuss strategy as we await news."

The group returned to the room, Panopter on full alert. Everyone was on edge, they couldn't afford another Choten scheme.

Master Isao gasped.

"Master Jaha! Master Isao!" Master Chavez's voice broadcasted over the radio. "We have a problem!"

"What is it?" Master Jaha asked, along with Ray, Allie and Gabe.

"The Choten crossed over to Light!"

**Cliffhanger maybe? *gets angry stares* I know, I know. I did say it would be a while before my next update. Hopefully I'll finish another chapter soon...**

**~Phantom-chan**


	29. Chapter 29

**Sorry...it's been way too long. Chapter!**

Chapter Twenty-Nine: To Steal the Light

Gabe was the first to freak out at the news.

"Sasha!" he exclaimed. He summoned Blinder Beetle and banished himself within seconds. Ray and Allie freaked out.

"Wait! Gabe!" Allie called to no avail.

"Not again!" Master Jaha practically wailed.

"What is with you adepts?!" Master Isao shouted.

"We gotta go after him before the Choten gets to him!" Ray exclaimed. Masters Kimora, Nadia and Chavez, who could hear the commotion over the radio, sighed in exasperation as well.

"Thunder Guardian Shaw K'naw!" Ray summoned. Allie put her hand on his shoulder, and Master Jaha noticed just in time to put her hand on Allie's.

As they materialized, Ray immediately asked Shaw K'naw to help them find Gabe.

They followed the robotic bird to a door, and ran in to see Gabe speaking to Sasha, thankfulness covering his face.

"Gabe!" Ray called. Gabe turned and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck.

"Sorry for worrying you all." he apologized. "But the Choten hasn't been found."

Suddenly, Light creatures surrounded the group, buzzing angrily. Sasha, saddened, looked apologetically at the group. "They detect a being of Darkness."

Master Jaha pursed her lips. "I promise, I'm not here to hurt Light even though I'm Master of-"

"It is not you." Sasha clarified, looking thoroughly embarrassed.

Allie recoiled, realizing. She felt a tear roll down her face. "Right. Um, I'm sorry." She released the Cloak. "I wear the Cloak of Darkness permanently, until my death. I'm sorry, I can't remove it. But I am not here to hurt you." The creatures buzzed again.

"The girl is telling the truth." Sasha backed her up. "Please, do not be bothered by her presence."

The creatures retreated reluctantly. Their bright eyes kept an unnerving watch anyway, and Allie felt like a criminal.

Guilt washed over her once again. Why her? Why was Megaria so fixated on _her_?

Why couldn't everyone just _leave her alone_?

They jumped as they heard crashing. Sasha immediately went to see the problem, telling them to stay put. Gabe pursed his lips.

"She's going to be fine." Ray told him.

"Seriously, Sasha's strong." Allie agreed.

"I know." he said, lips still pursed.

They heard blasts, a veil opening, then quiet.

Sasha flew back in, stone (or perhaps metal) faced.

"No creature is hurt. No true damage except a few scratches. One small gem was taken, but that's it-"

"Gem?!" Ray exclaimed. "Could it have been-"

"-the gem of the shining star?!" Allie finished.

"I'm not sure." Sasha responded, sheepishly. "All I know for sure is the archangels are upset, screaming about 'Kaiju' and 'portals'."

"Oh no." the three said, at the same time.

Master Jaha took a deep breath, rubbing her temples. "Alright. He will try to go after us. Let's go to the temple and plan."

Quickly saying goodbye to Sasha, the group opened a breach and went to the Temple. The other Masters were waiting for them, Master Jaha having warned them about the gem.

"We have two options." Master Isao laid out as they sat. It was a nice exception for the adepts to actually sit in the discussion. "One is to go after the Choten, or apprehend him in the Null Zone. Or we can wait here, for him to come after us."

"We can't stay here." Ray, Master Kimora and Master Chavez said immediately. And simultaneously.

"Well we know what we have to do." Master Nadia proclaimed, looking at Master Chavez with a slight smirk.

They prepared a route. Ray said a quick goodbye to his parents, who had been waiting at the temple since after the Kaiju "meeting".

The Masters and adepts walked through the breach, and started down the route to Kaiju.

"There's no other place he could go." Allie whispered, worried for the Mage of the Null.

They reached the clearing, where Kaiju was waiting. "He is on his way." she informed, darkly.

Allie ran to her side first, releasing the Cloak and holding up her inactivated gauntlet. The Masters followed suit, Gabe inspecting a panel Kaiju brought up to see where the Choten was.

Then, he walked into the open. He slowly clapped his hands, raising the tension and causing the Masters to narrow their eyes at him.

"Wow, I must say. _Amazing_. You knew exactly where I was going, and you got here first." the Choten congratulated. Then, they saw the five creatures behind him.

"An Essence Elf." Master Kimora pointed out.

"A Cyber Sprite." Master Nadia noticed.

"A very young Blaze Belcher." Master Chavez commented.

"A Gigabolver." Master Jaha added.

"A Thunder Cruiser." Master Isao finished, pursing his lips.

The Choten clapped again. "Very good."

"You can't control all of those at once." Ray glared, almost mimicking what the Choten had once said to him.

"And they're not very powerful." Gabe muttered to himself. "Except maybe the Gigabolver."

"You misinterpret my intentions." the Choten said, smirking. He smirk widened as Kaiju stepped back.

"No...no...they are all here." she whispered, terrified. "No..."

Allie gasped. "Five stones, five creatures of different civilizations! Kaiju might...she might..."

"I am so sorry." the Mage whispered to the horrified creatures. "I am so, so sorry." And then her eyes went black. Darkness surrounded her, but not the kind that would comfort Allie.

The ultimate blackness of Null.

The Masters cried out in shock. "What's going on?!"

"No!" Ray shouted.

"Kaiju!" Allie screamed.

"The creatures!" Gabe exclaimed, causing Ray and Allie to give him a "no-kidding-captain-obvious" look.

The stones rose, whether from a pocket, pendant or opened palm. They, like magnets, met over Kaiju's head and began to glow. The creatures, as if in a trance, surrounded Kaiju the same way the stones had. Their spirits started to seep out of them like mist.

"No!" The Masters tried to pull the creatures away. Allie ran to Kaiju and tried to wake her up. Gabe tried to fight off the Choten. Ray ran next to Kaiju, when suddenly, the stones combined into one, glowing stone. Kaiju's eyes went from black to gold, and her body began to glow golden.

"This stone is the key. The one who touches it will find the portal to answers." Kaiju, or the entranced Kaiju, spoke melodiously. The Choten ran to it, but Ray wouldn't have it.

"_No_!" Ray grabbed the stone, causing the black and golden storm to cease in an instant. Ray's body began to glow.

"No!" the Choten shouted. "You cannot steal my answer, my light!" He tried to tackle Ray, but an invisible barrier knocked him to the floor.

"Ray!" Allie and Gabe cried out. The Masters gasped as he began to float in a golden bubble-looking thing, then began to spin. The light was blinding, but Ray could see them covering their eyes. The last thing he saw in the Null Zone was Allie screaming.

"_Ray_!"

Ray blinked, finding himself in the golden bubble-thing still. But around him was an endless sea of stars.

"Welcome." a melodious voice greeted. Ray turned around rapidly, looking for the source of the voice. He heard laughter. "I'm sorry, you won't be able to see me. But I welcome you, Raiden Pierce-Okamoto, to the realm of infinity, where I can answer any question."

"Wait, how do you know my name?"

"Are you sure you want that to be your one question?"

"No! I just...um..."

More laughter. "I can answer any question. About your life, about someone you care for...anything at all."

Ray remained silent. He could ask anything at all. How to bring the creatures back, what his life would be like, if his friends would be happy in their lives.

Heck, he could even ask if Allie likes him as much as he likes her.

But there was one important thing, one that stood out from the rest.

"I've got it." Ray said. "How do we stop the Choten for good, and all his followers, forever, and can Kaiju be brought back to the human realm?"

"Those are two questions, dear."

"In a sense, they both are combined."

The voice sighed. "Alright."

Ray's question, or questions, were answered. With this knowledge, he took a deep breath and nodded. "Thank you." he thanked, confidently.

"You will be sent back now. Be warned...your friends and allies are very worried about you."

Ray's expression darkened as he nodded. The bright light flashed again, the spinning beginning. Ray closed his eyes, and waited for it to stop.

* * *

><p>While all this occurred in the portal of answersinfinity, the others were freaking out in the Null Zone. Kaiju was crying over the the dead creatures.

Gabe took his backpack and slammed it against the Choten's head, as if to make sure he was definitely knocked out.

The Masters were discussing what to do with the Choten, as Allie paced back and forth.

"He'll be back in a few minutes, just a few more minutes." she murmured nervously. Gabe put. Comforting hand on her shoulder as Allie freaked out.

"When he comes back, I think it's time you told him how you felt." Gabe said.

Allie blushed. "Why are you bringing this up now?" she mumble-asked.

"You've been putting it off."

"I don't want to ruin our friendship." Allie justified.

"I think you're just worried about being rejected."

Allie reddened further. "Shut up, Gabe."

He laughed good-naturedly. Then, the spinning ball of light reappeared. The Masters jumped, as Allie gasped. Kaiju glanced up, tears still running down her face.

Ray stepped out of the light, which dissipated quickly. Allie ran and jump-tackled him into a hug.

"Ohmygosh, thankgoodnessyou'reokay." Allie rushed out.

Ray laughed, supporting himself from the ground. The Masters sighed in relief, and Gabe kneeled next to him to make sure he was fine.

"I know how to finally stop the Choten," Ray said. "and I know where Kaiju belongs."

They all looked to him.

"Kaiju has to drain his mana, and he has to go to a human prison." Ray said. "And Kaiju belongs on our side of the veil."

Allie felt tears run down her face. But for the first time in quite a while, they were tears of joy.

**Yeah, slow updates...I literally had the worst writers block, no excuse there. When I finally got inspiration, I wrote the entire thing. Yes, I wrote this entire chapter today. So...um, sorry again, and sorry if it has a whole ton of mistakes. On the bright side, about two to three chapters left! One will have a lot of Rayllie fluff, because I love them. (As if this story didn't have enough of it.) See you soon!**

**~Phantom-chan**


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter Thirty: Fun and Fluff

Kaiju drained the Choten's mana without a second thought. She was still recovering from having to take five lives at once, but she was doing better.

The Masters opened a veil breach and dragged the Choten through by the legs. If it wasn't such a serious moment, the adepts knew they would be laughing at the ridiculous state of the Choten.

When they got back, the Masters decided the last task they had to do for the summer was find a place for Kaiju, then take the rest of it off. They were relieved in all honesty, but they were worried about finding a place for her. Of course, with Ray's parents both having new jobs and a slightly better home, they decided she could stay with them until they found a better place.

Kaiju found that after performing the stone ritual (against her will) and doing a huge drain of the Choten's remaining mana, she wasn't accidentally draining mana anymore. In her words, "I believe the magic is satisfied for now. But it will start again at some point, so please be cautious around me."

Gabe didn't go to Light, but still talked everyday to Sasha. They were content with how everything was going.

Of course, it was a pain for both Gabe and Allie to explain why they were back a week early to their parents. Gabe used some kind of "cockroach infestation" excuse, while Allie went with a "they thought we could go home early" approach. Needless to say, the terrific trio had a good laugh with the parents' reactions.

Allie used the Cloak to her benefit. Usually by playing pranks on Ray and Gabe, but whatever. She was finally adapting to the stupid thing, and she was going to make the most of its power.

San Campion was hosting a summer festival for the first time ever, and everyone was excited. Gabe planned to escape his family by asking Sasha as his date.

Hopefully Ronald and Donald don't interfere...

Ray planned his move too, and it involved a certain Darkness-loving blonde.

The trio were going to get ice cream one day, when Ray nudged Gabe. Gabe looked curiously at him. Ray gave him a pleading look. It dawned on Gabe, who rushed away, muttering some sort of excuse.

Allie hadn't noticed the exchange, but looked up as the proud techno-geek dashed away. "Uh, what's with him?"

Ray shrugged. "I'm not sure." You trickster, Ray.

Allie shrugged. "So what are you planning for the rest of the summer?"

Ray smiled at her. "Well I wanted to ask someone to the summer festival."

Allie sighed. She knew it, she knew he liked Alakshmi. "Oh. Cool."

"So Allie, would you like to go to the summer festival with me, as my date?"

Allie's jaw dropped, glancing at him. Seeing his kind smile, she blushed heavily. "Um, yeah. That sounds like fun."

He laughed at her shocked expression, prompting her to giggle as well. Gabe took that as his cue to return to the table.

"So...are you guys a thing?" Gabe said teasingly.

Allie grabbed Ray's hand across the table and they grinned at each other. "Yup." she responded.

Gabe laughed. "Took you long enough."

Ray and Allie stuck their tongues out at him simultaneously, only causing him and to laugh harder. "You're...only...proving...my...point." he forced out, in between snickers.

The three of them laughed together. They were ready for anything at this point.

...Except maybe another power-obsessed lunatic and lost Mage who can suck the mana, the _literal life force_, out of someone.

Allie put on a pretty lavender sundress about an hour Ray was planning to pick her up. She nervously paced around her room, wondering what her first date with him would be like. Her anticipation overtook the nerves though. She added just a touch of makeup for good measure, but found she didn't like it and started over. She repeated that three times before deciding it was fine. She did her hair into a side ponytail, and smiled.

"Ten minutes." she whispered. Even though she had added a touch of blush, she knew the rosiness of her cheeks was natural.

Meanwhile, an hour before he was planning to get Allie, Ray was being hassled by his parents, his grandpa, and Kaiju.

"Did she tell you what she's wearing?" Janet asked.

"You have to make sure she is having fun at all times." Ken advised.

"Make sure to compliment how she looks." Grandpa Okamoto added.

"Do not worry too much! She likes you, so be nice and everything will be okay." Kaiju calmed him. She was very good with this, having watched humans for centuries.

Ray was trying to push them out of his room, being nervous enough without the pestering of his family and friend.

When he finally got them out, about fifteen minutes later, he picked out a casual enough outfit and put it on quickly. He didn't want to seem overdone, but he definitely wanted to look his best.

He messed with his hair a good ten minutes, unsure if he should change is usual hairstyle. After all, his little red streaks made it hard to change it much.

He managed to pull his bangs slightly to the side without messing it up, and deemed himself presentable.

He had a lot of time left, so he decided to play a game of "Change-o-bots". He had ten minutes before Allie would be expecting him, so he decided it was time.

"Mom!" he called. "I'm going!"

"Have fun!" she responded. Both his dad and grandpa patted his back, urging him to go forward. Kaiju wished him a quick good luck, then smirked while watching Allie fuss over her appearance in a special panel.

"He's coming." she whispered to her, knowing full well she couldn't hear her. "Have fun, you both."

Ray nervously walked to Allie's, and about five minutes early, he reached her house. He debated waiting or going in, and he ended up going with going in. He knocked on the door, where Arthur Underhill greeted him.

"Hello, Ray. She should be coming down any second." Arthur said. "So how are your parents and grandpa?" he added, making small talk.

"They're good." Ray answered with a smile. "And how is your bank?"

"Great! Our business percentage increased by five percent in the last two months!"

"That's great!"

And then they both stopped. Allie waved from the top of the steps, wearing beautiful black sandals to match with her hair clip. She walked down carefully, trying not to show how hard she was blushing.

"You look beautiful, pumpkin." Arthur complimented her.

Ray, feeling heat in his cheeks as well, nodded. "You look amazing, Allie."

_Don't blush, Allie._ she thought. "Thank you." she said.

"Let me take a picture." Arthur announced. Allie sighed. "Ray, stand next to her."

Ray obliged, as he stood next to Allie. He took her hand in his, causing her to smile at him. Arthur took the picture.

"You guys look so cute together!" he exclaimed.

"You sound like my mom." he mumbled. But only Allie heard him. She laughed.

"Remember the dance?" she asked. They both remembered the time when Janet had hugged the two of them, announcing that they looked cute together.

"Alright, be home by seven." Arthur told Allie. "And Ray, don't you dare think about-"

"Dad." Allie groaned. "You know Ray."

"Y-You're right, pumpkin. Sorry." he muttered sheepishly.

Ray smiled nervously. "It's natural I guess, you are her dad."

"Now go!" Arthur pushed them out the door.

They walked, hand-in-hand, to the pier. They talked normally, but no one could deny they were definitely a little more nervous. Then they had a fateful encounter...

...Portia and Maribel.

"Hi Allie." Portia smirked. "Are you on a date...with him?"

Allie squared her shoulders. "Yes, I am. Got a problem?"

She pursed her lips. "Whatever. Come on Maribel, let's go." The girls walked away, but unbeknownst to Ray and Allie, they were whispering to each other.

"Didn't you think Ray was cute, like, last year?" Maribel whispered.

"Shut up!" Portia hissed.

Ray and Allie grinned at each other, then proceeded to the fair. Ray bought Allie cotton candy. She laughed and declared that they should share it.

Then they went to a "knock over the cans" game. Ray, despite not being very athletic, knocked them down in one go. Of course, Ray was plenty strong and fast, so...

Allie hugged the rather large teddy bear right after congratulating Ray and hugging him.

They sat on the boardwalk, dangling their legs over the water. They were both laughing, having so much fun. Then, Ray's expression sobered.

"Allie, I'm sorry." he told her.

Allie recoiled slightly, confused. "Uh, why?"

"I know you thought I liked Alakshmi." he admitted. "It took me a while to realize it. I'm kinda dense about stuff like that."

Allie sighed. "I'm sorry if that worried you. I guess I was...um, jealous."

"And you had every right to be. You're my closest friend besides Gabe. I should've been able to tell."

Allie blushed. "Um...I'm sorry too. I just figured you did...and I got jealous when you started spending time with Lucy too. I mean...she's really pretty. And you did get close."

"Then I'm sorry for making you think that." Ray said. They hugged again.

"Now that all that is out there..." Allie said, laughing nervously. She smiled. "Let's go have more fun."

Ray grinned. "Couldn't have said it better myself."

They enjoyed the rest of their date, to say the least.

* * *

><p>Of course, we can't forget about Gabe and Sasha! They went on a date too!<p>

Gabe called Sasha from about a quarter of a mile from the pier. She mimicked a human form, a different one from last time for obvious reasons, and they walked to the pier together.

They came about an hour later than Ray and Allie. Portia and Maribel were still lingering around the entrance.

"Look Portia. The other one brought a date too." Maribel nudged Portia.

Portia sighed then smirked. "She's way too pretty to actually be dating him, Maribel. Duh, they're here as _friends_." She dragged out "friends" like an insult.

"Actually, you are incorrect." Sasha smiled. "We are on a date."

Portia and Maribel gawked as the two walked in, holding hands. They reveled in the small victory, before going straight to the games.

Being experts in tactical strategy, they took turns suggesting the best way to approach each game.

"The way the cans are set up, hitting it from the side would not knock each one." Sasha said.

"True, but aiming for the top wouldn't do much good." Gabe added. No duh, guys. Have you played these before?

"Um..." The man working the game shifted awkwardly. Poor guy.

"Or to embellish it, you could aim for that corner." Gabe pointed. Sasha watched his train of thought, and smiled brightly.

She threw the ball at the corner, which hit the front of the stand, hitting the money box, hitting the wall, then slamming into the cans, knocking them all over.

The poor man running the booth was freaking out, as the ball had nearly hit him in the face. "Here!" he shouted, shoving the largest bears at them. "Take them all! Just don't come back!"

They took the three bears and walked down the pier. Gabe got popcorn for Sasha and himself, but she said she didn't like corn or butter. Gabe did his best, but couldn't persuade her to try some.

Gabe sighed. "Fine. Would you like anything else then?"

She shook her head.

They went to a water pistol game. Gabe saw Sasha eyeing the large rubber balls that lit up. He secretly summoned Gargle and asked him to make the gun he used faster. More water pressure, he said.

Bad idea.

"Ready...set...go!"

Gabe pressed the trigger, and all of the guns exploded. The water all directed to the target, and the bell rang, signaling his victory. The man running the booth was soaked, as well as the many others playing.

"Just...just...take them." the man gave them three large light-up rubber balls. The other kids were slightly disappointed, but probably antsy to get away from the scene.

Gabe and Sasha ventured further, to the end of one of the docks. Gabe apologized for getting Sasha wet, who laughed good naturedly and told him she was fine.

After a while, just talking, Sasha told him she needed to go. "This has been so much fun, Gabriel. You always remind me how much good humans are capable of. But I am needed to mend the last door quickly."

Gabe nodded. "Thanks for coming with me, Sasha." They hugged, and Sasha returned to the Light civilization with her three teddy bears and three rubber balls.

Gabe returned home, where Ronald and Donald were occupied with a video game. "Um...you guys are aware that the festival ends in half an hour, right?"

They shot up. "What?! Why didn't you remind us?!"

Gabe sighed and shook his head. He returned to his room, smiling.

"I should have asked her on a date a long time ago." he murmured to himself.

"What?! You went on a date?!" Ronald and Donald shouted from just outside the door. Gabe groaned.

"I'm never going to hear the end of this..."

* * *

><p>Ray and Allie were dueling in the arena, laughing and joking around. Alakshmi, Lucy, Gabe, Sasha and other acolytes were watching them duel.<p>

"Are they going to duel seriously or am I wasting my time?" Alakshmi asked haughtily.

The others ignored the question, but did agree that the couple wasn't taking the duel seriously in the slightest.

"Wait...are they dating?" Tareq asked from the stands. Gabe and Sasha both nodded, smiling.

Alakshmi smirked. "Took them long enough." Gabe snickered, and all the acolytes agreed.

Both Tatsurion and Squeaky were sick of them just joking around. The creatures conspired together with their eyes, and suddenly ran in close.

"Hey!" Both Ray and Allie cried out in surprise. Squeaky pushed Allie onto the floor, and Tatsurion grabbed Ray off his back and put him on top of her.

In other words, Ray was basically just over her.

Allie squeaked in surprise and both of their faces reddened. Those in the stands egged them on.

"Oh for heaven's sake, kiss already!" Master Jaha called, all of the Masters entering the arena.

Ray smiled down at her. She smiled back up at him. They leaned in and kissed gently.

The people in the stands cheered.

Ray got off of her and helped her up. "I'm glad you were my first kiss."

"Same." Allie replied, still red faced.

The Masters and everyone in the stands joined them.

"This has certainly been..." Gabe started.

"A summer to remember." everyone agreed, in unison.

**I don't usually say things like this, but I am really proud of myself! An entire chapter today! Okay, well I hope you liked the ending. **

**Thank you so much for coming with me, to see where my twisted mind led this story. Many things changed, and I probably have a bunch of loose ends and mistakes, but it's done! Thank you to anyone who read a single chapter, or even a sentence. Thank you for the follows, favorites and reviews, and thank you for putting up with my ridiculous update speed and ridiculous plot line. **

**And also, if you're still interested, I'm planning to have an epilogue! It won't be too long, but I hope to update it in a few days. **

**Thanks again.**

**~Phantom**


	31. Epilogue

**Thank you for sticking with me, guys! Thank you for reading, reviewing, favoriting, following, or even hating this story! Here, as promised, is an Eplogue for you all. Then, I'm officially done. And probably not doing another multi-chapter fic for a while. **

**A guest reviewed on Chapter 29: Thak you for your review. I will take that into consideration. I don't even remember how many times she cried...thanks anyway!**

Epilogue

Kasumi Pierce-Okamoto activated her gauntlet before actually entering the Temple, knowing she would probably get in so much trouble if she was caught. She wasn't one for shortcuts, but she was almost fifteen minutes late and was willing to take her chances.

She dashed inside, jammed her backpack in a locker, then ran to the Arena.

"You're late." The Master raised an eyebrow, with a slight smirk. The others, all acolytes, hid snickers behind their hands.

Kasumi pouted. "I'm sorry, I got caught up."

"With your boyfriend?" an acolyte teased.

Kasumi flushed. "No! Shut up, Arthur!"

"No yelling at your brother." The Master chided.

"Yes, _Master Allie_." Kasumi responded sarcastically.

"And no sarcasm to your master, adept."

Being the only adept out of all the recruits was hard, but when they got promoted, she wouldn't feel much better. So she had to keep practicing, even though she was only fourteen.

A man walked in, shaking his head with a small smile. "If you would stop coming fifteen minutes late every day, Kasumi, you could get more practice in."

Kasumi pouted again, crossing her arms. The man laughed, walked over to Master Allie, and kissed her.

Kasumi groaned. "Mom. Dad."

Master Allie grinned. "Come on, Ray. You're embarrassing her."

Master Ray stared in mock shock. "_What_?! I can't even kiss my wife without my daughter being embarrassed?!"

Arthur groaned. "Your son, too."

The acolytes laughed at the exchange.

"Ray, we're already twenty minutes late!" Master Allie chided. "We need to start!"

"Yeah, yeah. I'll watch from the stands."

"The Spell of Banishment is a fairly difficult spell, and takes a lot of practice. The ability to banish a creature may one day save your life." Master Allie recited. She summoned a rather large creature, "Trox, General of Destruction!"

Many of the acolytes gasped at the huge creature. Kasumi took a breath and got into her kata stance.

"Trox, General of Destruction...begone!" Kasumi cast the spell. The acolytes (minus Arthur, who scoffed) gawked. Some looked around, as if to see where the ginormous creature had run away to.

"But you will practice with Skeeter Swarmers." Master Allie assured them.

"Are you trying to torture them like I was?" a Master exclaimed, walking in. Master Allie groaned.

"Gabe! We will never get anywhere if everyone keeps interrupting!" Master Allie scolded.

Master Gabe grinned. "Well that would spare them from being scared half to death by those freaky bugs."

Master Allie sighed. "Go." she ordered Master Gabe. He put his hands up in mock surrender then joined Master Ray in the stands.

Master Allie covered her face with her hand, sighing. "Okay. Who will try first? Seriously, it's incredible acolytes are being allowed to learn it, and it's only for today. So who wants to go?"

"How's everything going?" Another Master walked in. Master Allie snapped.

Releasing the Cloak, she screamed, "_Enough_! If we get interrupted _one more time_, I will use the Spell of Banishment on _you_!"

The acolytes, minus Arthur, cowered in fear. Kasumi, Arthur, Master Ray and Master Gabe winced.

Master Lucy laughed nervously. "Right, um...I think I'll join Ray and Gabe in the stands."

Master Allie sighed, pulling the Cloak back. "Good. Now who wants to try?"

Arthur volunteered. He took a deep breath, then performed the kata. "Skeeter Swarmer...bego-" But the Darkness bug was too fast. It ran all over him, freaking him out. Arthur Pierce-Okamoto dashed around, screaming, "Get it off, get it off, get it off!"

Kasumi sighed. "Skeeter Swarmer, begone!"

Arthur sighed, moping, and joined the acolytes. He wasn't spared the snickers.

Master Allie sighed, but a tinge of humor flashed in her eyes. "Alright, who's next?"

* * *

><p>Kasumi sat down with a water bottle, finally at home. Performing the stupid spell was draining, and she had to do it five times!<p>

"So...why did you come late?"

Kasumi winced as her father approached, eyebrow raised. "Oh, I was, uh, with a teacher! Asking a question about the next test." she quickly covered. Master Ray crossed his arms, still giving her a look.

She sighed. "Fine...his name is Leo Jameson. I met him this year, and I thought he'd make a great acolyte. His reflexes are spot on, he's very intelligent, he's caring and he's pretty athletic."

"And you like him?"

"Not like _that_!" she said, not showing the rosiness of her cheeks.

"Fine...what makes you so sure about his abilities?"

"Well...there's a boy who gets bullied a lot. When someone throws something at him, Leo can catch it in a split second. That's where the caring comes in too. He's got some of the best grades in the class. Oh, and he's on the basketball team."

Master Ray looked slightly upset. "He sounds too perfect."

"He's a nice guy, dad."

"Fine...where can I find him?"

"_Huh_?!"

"Ray..." Master Allie joined the conversation. "Are you threatening a boy she likes?"

"What?" Master Ray feigned innocence. "I never said I was going to summon Tatsurion and threaten to feed the boy to him if he hurt Kasumi or anything."

Kasumi groaned while Master Allie shook her head in amusement. "Honestly, Ray." Allie said. "You can't do that, especially if she likes the guy."

"It's n-not like that!" Kasumi stammered. Both her parents gave her a look. "Well did your parents let you date?! Huh?!"

They laughed and nodded. Master Ray sobered quickly. "But that's a totally different story." he clarified. Master Allie sighed.

"When did you realize you liked each other, anyway?" Kasumi asked, genuinely curious now.

The Masters, the parents, shared a nostalgic glance. "Well, it was definitely a summer to remember." they replied, simultaneously.

Kasumi smiled. Arthur joined them, sitting next to Kasumi.

"Where do we start?" Master Allie asked, eyes sad.

Master Ray smiled. "Oh, I know exactly where to start. It all began with your mother, shouting."

_Can you believe the masters?!_


End file.
